100 oneshots for Itachi and Sasuke
by devotedtodreams
Summary: 100 themes focusing on the Uchiha brothers. Brotherly fluff, among other things. Main pairings: ItaSasu, SasuNaru, NaruSasu. Prompt 100, "Heart": Fluff ensues when Naruto gets sauce stains on his face during his date. ::ON HIATUS::
1. Author's Introduction & Prompt 7: Heaven

Time for a new beginning... well, this is my first story in the Naruto fandom. I guess I'll just see how it goes. I hope you'll enjoy it as much as I enjoy writing it.

As I am taking a break from writing long stories and have discovered that I actually like to write shorter things, I decided to take on a 100 themes challenge. This one's main characters will be the Uchiha brothers, Itachi and Sasuke. Other characters will appear too, of course, but I'll spontaneously decide on that as this challenge progresses. The same goes for the pairings, though currently, I can definitely say that there will be Itachi/Sasuke and Sasuke/Naruto! So if that offends you, perhaps you should turn back now. Not all chapters have the same rating, but just to be on the safe side, I'll go with the general rating I give my stories: T.

And if the vocabulary is really strange in some places, please tell me so I can try to fix it; English isn't my mother tongue (it's German).

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto! Masashi Kishimoto does!

Hmm... that's all I have to say for the moment, so let's get this started!

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**Prompt #7: Heaven**

Some people said that heaven was a place with green meadows and blooming flowers; a place where one could run around all day without ever getting tired. It would never be anything else but sunny up there, and there were plenty of clouds to pursue the activity of cloud-watching.

Others simply said that heaven was a place full of light where one's soul wandered around freely, liberated from the burden of an earthly, physical body. There were no more unanswered questions, and one could peacefully dwell in that realm for all eternity.

Some even said that it was a place where one could flutter from cloud to cloud, equipped with a pair of angel wings, rejoicing in harp music and living in perfect harmony, guided by the light of the Lord.

But if you would ask little Sasuke Uchiha what heaven was, he would give no such answer. He would say that heaven consisted of all the time he spent with his older brother, Itachi. His world was perfect whenever he sat in the elder's lap or got a ride on his shoulders. In his opinion, heaven wasn't heaven unless his aniki was around. Because he loved him so much.

**(word count: 200)**

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Feel free to review!

Maybe it has already become apparent, but I just dig fluff! Can't live without it... _(lol)_


	2. Prompt 14: Inevitable

Since Deidara and Sasori argue with each other very much (I've only read about this, never actually seen it before), I figured that I'd write something really short about that. I feel kinda sorry for Itachi, though.

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**Prompt #14: Inevitable**

"I'm telling you, you've got it all wrong! Art is so not eternal!"

"Yes, it is, brat! Art is something that can be admired for many years to come – unlike those damn explosive sculptures you make!"

"Art is a bang!"

"No, it's not!"

"Is too!"

"Is not!"

"Is too!"

Through half-lidded eyes, Itachi absently watched the flickering TV screen. He wasn't even sure what was running anymore, but last time he had checked, it had been some special program about art. That wasn't surprising, since Deidara and Sasori were sitting on either side of him. The down side about this was that they had begun to argue about art. And those arguments could last a very long time.

Now they had taken it a step further as they each held on to one end of the remote, yanking it back and forth as their opinions got exchanged. And because Itachi was sitting between them, he couldn't see half the TV anyway as the black media device kept going left and then right again in front of his eyes. He was getting sick of it.

"Fleeting!"

"Eternal!"

"**Fleeting**!"

"**Eternal**!"

Itachi's blood began to boil with impatience. Couldn't they just act their ages for one blasted evening and watch TV in peace?! At this point in time, he figured that a talk show would be less torturous than listening to those two incurable squabblers.

"See?" Sasori exclaimed, pointing at the Mona Lisa on the screen. "**That's** art!"

Deidara opened his mouth to give a snot-nosed reply when Itachi finally lost his calm and yelled:

"Shut the **fuck** up and change the program or I'll torture you for 72 hours!"

Immediately, the other two shut up and glared at each other while Deidara switched to a random channel. Some things were just inevitable…

**(word count: 300)**

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Again, I'd be glad to hear what you think! Somehow, I found this one quite amusing to write... :)


	3. Prompt 24: No Time

I wrote this late last night... somehow, it's always at nighttime when I'm more inspired than during the day. I really should stop going to bed at 3 AM, vacation or not... XD

This time: Sasuke contemplates while Naruto gets ready.

BTW: many thanks to those who reviewed! It means the world to me! :)

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**Prompt #24: No Time**

He had needed somebody to train with; someone who really would force him to go to his limits and wouldn't just be a ball and chain. Kakashi was nowhere to be found, and since Sakura would only end up fawning on him, there was only one other choice left: Naruto.

And the blond had immediately agreed to the suggestion. Hell, he had even looked overjoyed! Now Sasuke was merely waiting for him to get ready as he mused about that agreement. The fact that he hadn't been turned down upon asking someone to spend some time with him…

When he had been younger, he had constantly been rejected. He had asked Itachi over and over again if they could train together, if the elder could just spend some time with him. But Itachi had rejected him almost all the time. It had been like a ritual: he would approach Itachi, hoping so dearly to receive an affirmative answer, but Itachi would crush those hopes by jabbing him in the forehead with two fingers before uttering those words:

"_Sorry, Sasuke… maybe next time."_

Maybe next time… it would have been only half bad if there had **been** a next time at all. But there hadn't. It had remained a disappointment in itself, and when his brother had killed off the whole rest of their clan, Sasuke had abandoned all hopes that there would be that next time.

Ever since, he had rarely bothered asking people if they could spare some of their time. Not seldom had Itachi's jabs been rather painful, but that wasn't the only reason why Sasuke had acquired such behavior. He was just sick of the constant rejection.

'_You lied to me, Itachi. You lied to me over and over again. You never planned that there would be a next time, didn't you? I was just a pest that kept coming back, never dropping the hope that you would put whatever activity you were pursuing at the time on hold and be with me for a while. Some older brother you were,' _Sasuke thought bitterly as he leaned against the wall next to the doorway. He had no doubts whatsoever that Itachi had no regrets about that repeated action of his. Inwardly, he had probably even been laughing when the youngster's face had contorted into a frown upon getting jabbed in the forehead. Bastard.

Sasuke scowled.

"Hey teme, what's up? C'mon, let's get this party started, dattebayo! I'm gonna kick your ass!" a cheery voice pierced his dark thoughts, and a hand clapped his shoulder in an encouraging manner.

Sasuke looked up to see Naruto sporting that usual goofy grin that went from ear to ear. Idly, he wondered why Naruto's face hadn't yet frozen in that expression he wore so very often.

"Tch… in your wildest dreams, dobe," he retorted in a monotone voice.

Laughing, Naruto bounded off to the training grounds. Sasuke followed with his distinctive smirk, glad that finally, someone willingly spent time with him.

**(word count: 500)**

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As usual, feedback is very much appreciated! Next time, I think I'll do a funny one (I **think** it's funny)... hehe...


	4. Prompt 25: Lurking

Somehow, things like this always come to my mind late at night. But this time, I decided to postpone my plans of going to bed and wrote this instead before I'd forget the idea again... enjoy!

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**Prompt #25: Lurking**

"Come on, Sasuke! I thought you were looking forward to this! What are you afraid of now?"

"I **was** looking forward to this! But how do I know that nothing's… you know, lurking there in the water, waiting to attack me?"

"Have you been watching shows about creature features on Discovery Channel again?"

"No. Why do you blame the TV so often?"

"Never mind… Look, I'll go ahead. I'll show you that there's absolutely nothing you need to be afraid of, okay?"

Sasuke looked up at his brother and made an inviting gesture. Itachi smirked and confidently stepped forward, casually swinging his arms a bit and even whistling softly. Still distrustful about the situation, Sasuke watched him closely, his arms still crossed as he had done when he had stubbornly refused to go ahead into the water.

It was true; he had been looking forward to this vacation very much, but before they had come here, Sakura had told him things she had heard about the beach. Things her mother had either seen or experienced first-hand. And they hadn't sounded pleasant at all.

Crabs in the sand?

Jellyfish suddenly appearing in swarms in the bay?

Spiky sea urchins?

According to Sakura, encounters with those creatures were always painful.

His own mother, Mikoto, had waved his worries aside, yet for some reason, they just refused to leave his mind. And when he had seen the large mass of water that was more commonly known as the ocean, he had definitely been rendered unsure all over again. Of course, Itachi had laughed out loud upon finding out why Sasuke approached the water so reluctantly: apparently, the elder wasn't afraid of anything.

While his brother walked on – now the water had almost reached his knees – Sasuke's eyes kept darting back and forth, searching for any sign that something was… there, and would therefore confirm his worries.

"See? Everything's fine! Now don't be such a scaredy-cat and come on!" Itachi challenged him, turning around, still looking overly confident.

Doubtfulness nagged at his mind, and slowly, Sasuke shook his head, not budging an inch. "Mmh… I don't think so," he said slowly.

"Honestly; you're being ridiculous! There's nothing h– OW!" Itachi suddenly yelped, almost jumping out of the water itself, his hands shooting downwards to clutch his foot. He lost his balance and fell backside-first into the water, yelling and cursing in pain.

Sasuke whistled as he watched that spectacle while louder-getting voices signaled the rapid approach of their worried parents…

Not much later, Itachi was gritting his teeth and gripped the chair's edge as the hotel's diving instructor was plucking several sea urchin needles out of the sole of his foot. He winced when another needle got removed.

Sasuke was looking over his shoulder and suddenly found himself smirking at his brother's distress.

"So, there's nothing there, huh?" he asked with fake innocence.

"Shut up," Itachi growled sullenly. He was convinced that that blasted creature had been lurking there on purpose to ridicule him…

**(word count: 500)**

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Just to make that there are absolutely no misunderstandings... with "creature features", Itachi means bizarre creatures of the deep, of course (some of them do look rather scary)...

This is very loosely based on something that once happened to my mom in the Caribbean. She told me that when we were in Kenya, and for a while, I was rather suspicious about going into the water just like that as well...

Anyway, please tell me what you think! And I hope it was kinda funny...


	5. Prompt 34: Moon

I don't know why, but recently, I caught myself thinking of a line from the movie "Angels in the Outfield" which always makes me smile; JP said it, and I often think about it when I look at the scythe moon. So anyway, I suddenly thought about that particular line again - it will be the first thing Sasuke says in this oneshot, BTW - and boom! I was inspired to write this. I hope you'll like it! :)

Disclaimer: I disclaim the first thing Sasuke says in this story. It belongs to whoever owns it (lame, I know, but I really don't know who owns the rights in question).

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**Prompt #34: Moon**

When they had agreed to simply watch the stars one night together, Naruto guessed that their interaction would be as usual: mostly silence, except perhaps exchanging some of their standard insults. And when those came to an end, a certain raven-haired teen would smirk in that overly confident, almost gloating way of his. Then silence would ensue again.

What Naruto hadn't expected, however, was that Sasuke would make a comment when they hadn't even been lying there in the meadow for ten minutes. Indeed; his teammate suddenly pointed at an object in the heavens and said:

"Look, it's God's thumbnail."

"Say what? That has got to be the dumbest thing you've ever said!" A laugh followed these words.

"It's not dumb," Sasuke merely insisted, watching the scythe moon intently.

"Please," Naruto sighed, "That's something a little kid would say. Frankly, I've never even heard someone call the moon like that before."

"I did. Back when I was little, I did."

That remark shut Naruto up, and what light-heartedness had been in the air just before got replaced with reminiscence. And that was exactly why Naruto didn't make any wise-guy response to what had just been said, for Sasuke had rarely before spoken of his childhood. Only to Naruto, too, but it had always just been little scraps described in short, precise sentences. It had taken lots of encouraging speeches to get only one of those out of the Uchiha.

"…When you were little, huh?" Naruto repeated, looking at the moon now as well.

Sasuke had folded his hands behind his head, and when he launched into another one of those very short stories of his, he felt one hand become tense as it clawed itself into his hair.

"Sometimes Itachi would do this with me."

"Stargazing?"

"Yeah."

Now more than ever, Naruto knew that his best guess was to let Sasuke do all the talking and not ask any further questions; the topic of the elder Uchiha tended to be one that easily reopened old sores, and the blond ninja clearly remembered the look on Sasuke's face when they had last talked about Itachi.

"I used to say the same thing: «Look, it's God's thumbnail». He would laugh and tell me that no, it isn't God's thumbnail."

As the memory returned full-force, Sasuke paused so he wouldn't suddenly lose his voice. The situation in itself was so familiar… he could almost picture Itachi lying next to him, a small but kind smile gracing his features when he would calmly correct Sasuke.

"He would say: «Sasuke, you're four years old now. Perhaps you should start calling the moon by its true name». I did, but only to please him. And even when I was six, I used that childish expression again, just to see how he would react. I think he was quite amused."

Naruto hummed softly to signal that he was still paying attention.

"…That was the last time we watched the stars together," Sasuke finished his brief tale in a whisper.

Hearing the wisp of sadness which laced that voice, Naruto turned his head to see – like last time – a sad expression on Sasuke's face. It was quite a difference to the usual hateful look he sported when someone mentioned Itachi. Since Naruto had seen this different side to his friend, he was quite convinced that the reckless, undisputed hatred was only a façade to a certain degree. Sensing the blue eyes watch him, Sasuke looked away so the moonlight wouldn't illuminate the tear or two that had formed in his eyes.

When Sasuke obscured himself from a clear view, Naruto looked back at the moon and gazed at it thoughtfully for a few moments before saying: "You know, actually it's not that dumb after all. Now that I think about it… it **does** look kinda like a thumbnail."

"Nice try, Naruto. You don't need to comfort me," Sasuke replied with a small smirk.

"I'm serious," his friend insisted, shooting a meaningful glance at the dark-haired teen.

For a moment, they just stared at each other, then they laughed shortly before looking back at the moon. Or «God's thumbnail», as they called it for the remainder of the night.

**(word count: 700)**

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Although I had planned to post this today anyway, I've found another reason to do so: **happy birthday, Sasuke**! (Even though you are kinda pissing me off at the moment... you know, abandoning Konoha and stuff... -.-;;)

Please review; it would make me very happy! :) I think next time I'll go for a longer one (more than 1,000 words, yay!)...


	6. Prompt 76: Broken Pieces

This was one of the first oneshots I had written when I decided to take on the challenge. Therefore, it is sort of special to me. I'm not entirely sure if this matches the title, but see for yourselves.

Italics are obviously flashbacks. Especially the second one is strongly based on what I think about when I see a very special picture...

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**Prompt #76: Broken Pieces**

"Itachi-san? Leader-sama demands that you get your ass out of bed now. What's the matter with you?"

There was no answer, not even the blink of an eye.

"Dammit, Itachi-san, at least **say** something!"

There was a long, awkward pause, but then the dark-haired one of the two asked in an unfamiliarly quiet voice: "Kisame, do you ever think back on your life before Akatsuki?"

His partner was slightly stumped by that question, and literally like a fish, his mouth opened and closed a few times before he could finally give an answer: "Not often, no. Why? Do **you**?"

"More often than I want to."

Kisame sat down on the chair next to the bed, where Itachi lay outstretched like a board, gazing glassy-eyed at the ceiling.

"If you don't mind me asking… but… what do you think about?"

Itachi blinked, and as the Sharingan vanished, Kisame briefly glimpsed the original onyx color of those eyes before they were obscured by the eyelids. An almost worryingly heavy sigh made the Uchiha's chest rise and fall noticeably. In a voice that sounded monotone, but far quieter than usual, the missing-nin replied:

"I think about… spring. About sakura trees. And I think about…" He silenced, as if the battery that powered his voice had just died.

"And you think about…?" Kisame prompted him. He couldn't imagine that merely thinking about spring and sakura trees made Itachi acquire such unfamiliar behavior.

"…Sasuke," a faint whisper ended the briefly interrupted sentence.

The shark-man frowned and propped up his chin on the handle of his trusty sword. "Sasuke? Your little brother? Forgive me if I'm mistaken, Itachi-san, but so far, whenever you mention him, you do so with perfect indifference. He doesn't mean anything to you."

"Alas, that's not true," Itachi corrected him. "Yes, I massacred my clan and tormented him with the Mangekyou Sharingan when he found the bodies, but I would be lying if I were to say that he means nothing to me. He still is my brother. And now… somehow… when I think of him, I remember… other times. Lost times. The shattered remains of something I can never get back."

As Kisame patiently remained silent, Itachi delved deep into his memories and recalled the best ones, ones that actually made his heart ache these days…

_A __three-year-old Sasuke stood at the edge of his brother's bed, frightened out of his wits. While Itachi was groggily awakening, lightning flashed outside again and was immediately followed by a booming clap of thunder. Without any invitation, Sasuke squeaked in fear and hopped onto the bed, desperately burying his tear-streaked face into the elder's chest. After blinking a few times, Itachi calmly shifted, his brother following his movements instantly, then he put his arms around the small body, hugging it closely. One of his hands strayed to the youngster's black hair and petted it comfortingly while Sasuke sobbed, whimpering about the raging storm. When the stressed breathing finally became calmer and the little one had stopped trembling vehemently, Itachi whispered for him to stay calm, that he would protect him, that he wouldn't let anyone or anything hurt him. He had only just finished his quiet declaration when he noticed the weight on his chest get a bit heavier as Sasuke fell asleep, his even breaths tickling the elder's skin. Itachi carefully put his arms around him and closed his eyes again, quickly drifting back to sleep…_

"I remember that night so well… yet when I do, it's as if I'm a stranger to my own self," Itachi muttered. He wondered if Sasuke remembered that incident too.

"Wow… I didn't know you and your bro were so close," Kisame commented. Indeed; Itachi had never given anyone the impression that he still harbored such fond feelings for Sasuke, even after all the years.

"We were. Even outside our clan, we were known for our relationship. People knew us. Many heads turned after us when we walked the streets."

"Really?"

"…"

"_Nii-san! Nii-san! Can we go to the market? Can we? Can we?"_

"_Of course, Sasuke, but don't get overexcited like that –"_

"_Will you take me piggy-back? Please? Pretty please?"_

_Itachi chuckled and squatted down. "As you wish, little brother. Come on."_

"_Yay!" an overenthusiastic five-year-old Sasuke cheered and practically jumped onto his brother's back, almost knocking the air out of Itachi before the elder rose again, his arms securely supporting Sasuke's legs as the youngster's arms were wrapped around his chest. Moving quickly before their father would see them like that, Itachi walked out onto the streets and headed for Konoha's middle, oddly enough finding himself relaxing completely as he listened to his brother'__s delighted noises:_

"_I'm so high up! I'm on top of the world!" Sasuke squealed happily as they passed an old couple. They smiled at the brothers, obviously touched by the scene._

"_Otouto, don't fidget so much, otherwise I won't be able to hold onto you tightly enough," Itachi reminded him._

"_Sorry, aniki! Hey, we're here!"_

_That afternoon, Konoha's market was filled with Sasuke's happy voice, and barely anyone could resist smiling at the idyllic scene. __They even met Naruto, Sasuke's comrade, and the two boys played tag for quite a while, running around Itachi and almost making him trip over them every now and then. In the late afternoon, Itachi carried Sasuke home again, and the now tired youngster nuzzled his neck before declaring:_

"_I love you, aniki! I love you very much!"_

"_I love you too, Sasuke. Really, I do," Itachi murmured, turning his head to breathe a kiss onto Sasuke's cheek._

"_You're the best, Itachi!"_

"No matter how hard I try, I simply can't forget those things. I know I can never go back and that I am responsible for all his hatred – yet why I can't I rid myself of those memories? It's like a broken mirror I can't throw away!" Itachi struggled to explain, wringing his hands in frustration.

"As long as Sasuke means something to you, I'm afraid you won't be able to forget them," Kisame told him in an almost apologetic fashion.

"Why, Kisame? Why can't I hate him as much as he hates me?" Itachi whispered.

"I don't know… but if this is bothering you so much, why did you let him live in the first place?"

Itachi stiffened at that question. He hadn't told anyone that he had been supposed to kill Sasuke as well. He hadn't, because he had loved his younger brother, but still he had assigned him the task of an avenger, the task to hate him. But Itachi caught himself thinking: had it really been worth it? If he hadn't killed them, would he be accompanying his brother down the path of the shinobi, watching the younger one grow up while experiencing many more memories that would be just as pleasant as the fondest ones he remembered now?

"Sasuke…" he muttered absently, imagining his brother's facial expression change from childish joy to loathing hatred.

"Itachi-san?"

Oh yes, he had almost forgotten that Kisame was there.

"Yeah?"

"Look, I could go tell Leader-sama that you need… ano… some rest, so to speak. Time to sort things out. Shall I do that?"

"…That sounds like a good idea, Kisame. Thanks."

"Sure thing. And if you need to talk about something… anything… with anyone, just let me know, ne?" Kisame asked as he stood up.

Itachi nodded slightly. "I owe you."

Although it looked rather frightening, Kisame gave him a smile that bore the intention of cheering him up. In fact, the other rogue ninja almost showed him thumbs-up.

"Hey, we're partners, after all."

When he was alone again, Itachi turned his back on the door and sighed anew as the memories returned again to haunt him – like they always would.

**(word count: 1,300)**

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Whew... I felt like roadkill this morning. Guess that's what wading across a river with a strong current and a stony riverbed can do to you... I swear, I'm never doing that again without at least wearing sandals or something! You see, there was this class reunion, and two guys told me to wade to the island they were on (I had no bathing suit or anything, but a backpack with important and especially some technical equipment in it as well)... damn, I bet they did that on purpose -.-;; At least things went more or less smoothly after that... ;)

You know the drill: review if you can spare the time and the good will! :)


	7. Prompt 17: Morning

After posting a story with more than 1,000 words, I almost feel guilty to submit such a short one... _(sigh)_ But hopefully, I can make it up to you by promising that tomorrow, you will get another one... these short ones will have to do until I've written a few more of the longer ones (I had totally spaced out during dinner because I was trying to get inspired by the random thoughts in my head; I think my family was kinda freaked out - especially my bro, since he knews best what I'm thinking about that... never mind that he's absolutely disgusted by the mere thought of that, hehe)...

Anyways; hope you enjoy this one as well! I dedicate this one to everyone who isn't a morning person (including me)!

(P.S: Yay, it's number 17! My lucky number (besides 7)! Another reason for me to be rather fond of this one...)

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**Prompt #17: Morning**

Yawning with his mouth open so wide that a whole muffin could easily have fit in it, Sasuke shuffled into the kitchen, rubbing at his eyes. He had only gotten up because he didn't want his mother to come wake him up by flooding his room with sunlight. He **hated** that…

But one look at Mikoto told him that he needn't have worried about that, for she looked just as tired as him. With her eyes barely open, she stood at the counter, stirring something in a glass: her so-called "power drink". However, she looked so incredibly tired right now that Sasuke seriously doubted it would have the promised energizing effect on her.

"Morning, mom," he mumbled and sat down at the table, his posture clearly depicting his sluggish morning attitude.

"Hi, honey. Slept well?" Mikoto asked in an almost identical mumble as she joined her son at the table. As she walked over, he briefly gazed at her nightgown: it featured a grumpy-looking, pajama-wearing rabbit which was sticking out its tongue. Bold letters beneath it said: «I don't do mornings».

'_Hell yeah,'_ Sasuke thought, then answered: "No. You?"

She shook her head. "Sometimes I think I married a chainsaw instead of a man."

"Mmh," Sasuke hummed, closing his eyes. If he tried hard enough – which wouldn't be very hard, given his current mood – he could just fall asleep here and now, and maybe wake up at lunch again. He even was too tired to laugh at his mother's joke.

For a moment, there was only silence in the kitchen, but then a noise could be heard from outside. Insane laughter. Nobody budged. Normally, they would have noticed the pile of hastily deposited dishes next to the sink. Normally, they also would have seen that the bottle of maple syrup was quite a bit emptier…

Suddenly, the door banged open, and a seemingly gone-wild Itachi bounded into the house.

"Goooooooooooooooood morning!" he yelled in a horribly cheesy fashion. "Hi mom! Hi little bro!" Roughly, he ruffled Sasuke's already messed-up hair.

Just then, his best friend Shisui dashed inside as well. "Gotcha!" he shouted.

"No ya don't!" Itachi retorted and ran once around the table with Shisui in hot pursuit before they raced outdoors again, knocking over a chair in the process.

Sasuke groaned and slouched off. "Geez, I'm going back to bed…"

Mikoto just pinched the bridge of her nose.

**(word count: 400)**

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I can't believe I made Itachi hyper... he'd probably want my head for that if he knew! XD

Please review; those always make my day! :)

See ya soon!


	8. Prompt 23: Cat

As promised, here is the next update! I actually dedicate this one to... cats. Because they're wonderful animals and great pets. (Okay; so I've only been around cats my entire life, so I don't know any better - but I'm not putting other pets down!)

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**Prompt #23: ****Cat**

Sasuke didn't care that Naruto called him silly; he was absolutely sure that his jealousy was being triggered on purpose. Why else would Naruto get smothered by affections so recklessly, making him giggle happily while Sasuke sulked in the background? But all that was about to change: Naruto was gone, and now it was just Sasuke and his rival. He would sort out this matter once and for all, determining who would forever be number one on Naruto's list of loved ones.

The possibilities to eliminate the competition were so varied that Sasuke couldn't possibly decide which one he should go with. After ten minutes of contemplation, he decided to just act instinctively, for the task had to be done by the time Naruto would get home. Thinking up excuses out of thin air couldn't be **that** hard, so no worries about that.

Reaching out, he lightly touched one of the offender's ears with his fingertip. The ear twitched. Sasuke grinned evilly and continued his little game of "attacking" the ears some more, always getting that twitch – until the cat awoke with a start, shaking its head.

It blinked, looking around, and when it saw Sasuke, it yawned heartily. The teen growled. Completely unimpressed by that, the cat didn't even spare him another glance as it began to clean itself, using a front paw to clean its head.

"You think you're so much better than me, don't you? But I've got news for you: Naruto is mine, and **only** mine. You have no rights to him. After all, you couldn't possibly have had a life like mine… I lost all the people I loved, but I certainly won't lose Naruto to the likes of you," he snorted. Suddenly, he felt weird – why the heck was he talking to a cat? Everyone knew that nobody could talk to animals…

The cat interrupted its cleaning briefly to look at the Uchiha before it scratched itself behind an ear with one of its hind legs. Sasuke watched how as it shook its head, a small pink tongue emerged, curling up towards the little black nose before retreating again.

"What's so great about you? Why does he like you so much?" Sasuke wondered, watching the animal from where he sat on the bed's other end.

Suddenly, the cat ended its cleaning session and walked over to Sasuke with feline grace. It mewed at him before rubbing its head against his knee. A soft rumbling filled the air – the calming, unique sound named purring. All by itself, one of his hands laid itself on the cat's head before slowly petting its spine all the way to the tail. The purring got louder. Sasuke repeated the movement… and before he knew it, he was smiling at the cat.

Later, when Naruto got home, he found Sasuke and the cat curled up against each other on the bed, dozing, and he chuckled amusedly. He had been right: even Sasuke Uchiha would eventually succumb to a cat's charm.

**(word count: 500)**

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I can barely walk past a cat without trying to pet it... luckily for me, plenty of cats in the neighborhood are willing to let me do just that. But none of them can better my own little darling! Sorry, I just had to say that; I love him so much... :)

I hope you liked this, and I 'm looking forward to hear what you think! I'm thinking about a 800 or 1,100-word prompt for the next installment... mmh... decisions can be so hard... _(sigh)_


	9. Prompt 85: Sick

After quite a bit of an argument with myself, I've finally decided to present you with this oneshot! I was listening to sad music all the time while I wrote this (I had downloaded new songs and was just in a "sad phase" again), so I think it's sad (and yet... fluffy... kinda) - but see for yourselves. Behold my poor attempt to write about sickness! XD (still; I am very, very fond of this one)

Hopefully you'll like it anyway! Happy reading!

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**Prompt #85: ****Sick**

At the sound of his mother's hurried footsteps passing his bedroom door, five-year-old Sasuke hopped off his bed and timidly peeked past his slightly ajar door to see the hem of her apron disappear into the room of his older brother. Soft murmurs could faintly be heard, then Mikoto Uchiha reappeared again, looking concerned as she swept off to the kitchen.

When the coast was clear, Sasuke tiptoed into his brother's room – and stopped in the doorway, his heart suddenly seeming to beat much louder behind his ribcage.

Itachi was lying in his bed. Pearls of sweat had formed on the forehead, the breathing sounded rather laborious and was accompanied by a scratching noise in the back of the elder's throat, and the stressed, almost agonized facial expression was an extremely unfamiliar sight to Sasuke. He had never seen Itachi in a state like this before; he had always seen him as the unwavering, strong and unbreakable older brother. But to see him look so weak, so vulnerable… it scared Sasuke.

Reverently, he approached the low bed, never taking his eyes off Itachi, who didn't seem to notice his presence.

"…Aniki?" he whispered fearfully.

Upon getting no reaction, Sasuke knelt beside the bed and touched the hand that wasn't covered beneath the sheets. It felt hot.

"Aniki!" he repeated, though only minimally louder.

He already thought that this attempt was fruitless as well when Itachi's eyelids suddenly twitched, then they opened to reveal onyx eyes like his, only that they were practically glowing from a heavy fever.

"Sasuke…" he breathed. The feebleness of his voice startled the little boy even more.

"Itachi… what's wrong? What happened?"

Despite his weakened state, Itachi chuckled when he could clearly hear how concerned his dear younger brother was. "Don't worry… it's nothing…" he began, but had to cut his response short when the whole bed shook as he coughed vehemently.

"Nii-san!" Sasuke squeaked, scared by this sudden coughing fit and the look on Itachi's face; that look as if he were in terrible pain.

"Honey!" With that exclamation, Mikoto re-entered the room. Deep motherly concern illuminated her face as she hurried to the bed and tried to steady Itachi until the coughing had subsided. "Ssh, darling… everything will be alright…" she murmured as she gently rubbed her older son's back. When Itachi finally stopped coughing, she helped him lay down again. Then she grabbed the little towel she had brought along and laid it on Itachi's forehead. A relieved sigh escaped the lips of the ten-year-old.

"Thanks, okasan," he muttered.

Mikoto tenderly stroked his cheek before turning to Sasuke for the first time since entering the room. "Sasuke, dear, leave Itachi alone for a while, okay? He needs the rest."

"But… but okasan…!"

"Please," she tried to convince him.

Stubbornly, the worry for his brother even more apparent than ever, Sasuke wildly shook his head. "No! I want to stay with aniki!" When his mother gave him a pitying look, he sniffled, and when he blinked, his big black eyes overflowed.

Mikoto couldn't stand to see him being so sad, so she gave in to his pleas, albeit somewhat reluctantly. "Alright, Sasuke-kun. But only until I've fetched the thermometer."

Sasuke knew that his mother only made compromises once, so refusing her offer and initiating further protest was out of the question. "Hai, okasan," he agreed, wiping at his nose with his lower arm.

Mikoto smiled fondly at him, then she walked away. Not wasting a second, Sasuke turned back to Itachi, who appeared to be focusing on taking the longest breaths he could. The rattling sound in the elder's throat scared the bejesus out of Sasuke.

"Aniki…" he sniffed.

Itachi opened his eyes again and turned his head a bit to have a better look at his sibling. The cloth on his forehead almost slid off, but Sasuke caught it in the last moment and pushed it back into its place.

"Otouto, you don't need to be afraid." His throat hurt with every word he spoke, yet he tried hard not to let it show.

"But you sound so terrible…"

"I just have a bad cold, Sasuke. Haha is looking well after me, so you don't need to be frightened in any way."

"I want to look well after you too!" Sasuke told him, a strong gleam of determination dawning in his eyes.

"No… I don't want you to get sick as well." He was so tired… he just wanted to sleep… Itachi closed his eyes, but forced himself to stay awake as Sasuke's voice sounded out again:

"But when I'm sick, you still come to me… You read me stories, you talk to me… can't I do something like that for you too?"

"You've never been as sick as I am now. I would be showing disgracefully little responsibility if I were to ask you to stay with me. Please understand that," Itachi whispered.

"Nii-san…" Sasuke took Itachi's hand in his own and leaned over the bed until the tips of their noses touched. "I wish you would let me stay…" the young one spoke in a very quiet voice as he closed his eyes, relishing in this moment he spent so close to his brother. Once more, a tear leaked out of each his eyes.

Itachi felt the dampness that suddenly reached their noses. Hardly anything made him as sad as a crying Sasuke, but he knew that if his comfort hadn't worked by now, it wouldn't if he would try again. Still, he felt his lips move automatically in exactly such an attempt:

"Don't cry, otouto, please don't…"

"I can't help it. I hate seeing you sick. I wish I could make it better just because I love you," a shaky voice replied.

The absolute sincerity of that comment deeply touched Itachi, and he decided that he couldn't resist expressing how he felt. And so, with each movement resulting in a new ache in his limbs, he shifted and kissed Sasuke's forehead. Actually, he merely let his lips brush the boy's skin, but it was a kiss all the same. He could only guess how hot that touch must have felt. Ruefully, he regarded the flow of tears that ran from the little one's eyes, even when they were closed.

"Sasuke… I love you too. And even though what you wish for cannot come to be, you can be assured that it does make me feel better," he told him. His voice came out very raspy, but he lacked the strength to clear his throat.

"Really?" Sasuke asked and opened his eyes again in order to carefully regard the elder, clearly in search of a visible change such as the feverish glow vanishing from the black eyes.

Itachi knew this and smiled. "Don't bother to spot a difference. I feel better, but you can't see that. Because it's in here," he explained, fitfully moving his other hand until it covered his heart.

"Oh," was all Sasuke said. Then he put one hand on Itachi's and kissed his sibling right between the eyes. This resulted in a content sigh from the latter.

Not even ten seconds later, a gentle female voice spoke from behind the two brothers: "Sasuke-kun, please don't go too close… I don't want you to catch this too. Itachi, dear, let me take your temperature."

Obediently yet reluctantly, Sasuke drew back and gave his mother some space. She dropped to her knees beside the youngster and carefully stuck the thermometer underneath Itachi's tongue, her other hand tenderly caressing his forehead where it wasn't covered by the now almost warm cloth. No words were spoken as they waited for the device to determine the temperature. Mikoto held one of Sasuke's hands, her thumb stroking the back of said hand. When the thermometer beeped, Mikoto removed it from Itachi's mouth. Her shoulders barely rose and fell in a suppressed sigh as she stood up.

"Come, Sasuke-kun. Let Itachi rest now."

"Goodbye, aniki. I'll come back later," Sasuke softly called back to the elder, whose small smile showed his approval of that idea.

But when the door to his room closed and he was left all to himself again for the time being, the smile dissolved into a frown. As he drifted off to a restless sleep, Itachi kept recalling his brother's declaration of love over and over again in his mind…

**(word count: 1,400)**

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Please be gentle... as I said, I probably am not that talented when I'm writing about a character who's sick, but oh well. I didn't have to do all that much editing (read: reduction), therefore I'm a bit proud of this.

I learned a little bit more Japanese while writing this: "chichi" (father) and "haha" (mother) are used when you're referring to your parents, while "otosan" and "okasan" are used when you talk to them. That's yet another reason why I enjoy writing these fanfics so much... :)

I'm looking forward to reviews - thank you to everyone who has reviewed/faved this story and/or added it to their alerts. It makes me so happy...!

Until next time... Auf Wiedersehen!


	10. Prompt 55: Waiting

Hmm... where did the inspiration for this one come from again? I can't recall it... well, then I'll add this one to the category "where the inspiration source got forgotten". It happens.

But aside from that, all is good. I hope you'll enjoy it! :)

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**Prompt #55: ****Waiting**

At nightfall, Mikoto Uchiha walked through the streets of Konohagakure, heading for the village's gates. It was the fourth night in a row that she was taking this path. To her, it felt like some sort of odd ritual. A few years earlier, it had been the same; except that nowadays, she had to walk to the village's gates instead of simply to the front door.

Part of the ritual was stopping at the ramen shop, where she would exchange a few words with Teuchi. The discussions were very trivial, but for reasons she couldn't quite explain, they cheered Mikoto up somewhat, even if it was only for a moment. When she left the light of the ramen shop, the smile would fade from her face and get replaced with a stoic expression that served as a cover for her concern.

Several minutes later, she had crossed the bridge and was now approaching the gates. Even though it was dark, she was close enough to see what she sought: a small shadow leaning against the wall just beside the gates.

Mikoto stopped right in front of that shadow and waited briefly before saying softly: "Sasuke-chan, it's time to go home now."

The small boy at her feet looked up. His eyes were filled to the brim with sadness and longing. "Already, okasan?" he asked sadly.

"Yes. It's dark, and you shouldn't be outside on your own. Come; tomorrow is another day." She offered her hand to him.

For a moment, Sasuke didn't budge, but then he slowly reached out and took her hand, allowing her to help him climb to his feet. "Okasan, how much longer do I have to wait until aniki comes back?" he inquired.

Mikoto could tell that he was desperate for an answer, but no matter how much she wished it would be different, she couldn't give him what he desired. "I'm sorry, honey, but I really don't know."

"What about tomorrow?" Sasuke asked, as if he hadn't understood what she had just said.

"Maybe."

"The day after tomorrow?"

"Sasuke, please don't ask me that. You know I cannot answer it. I know you miss your brother, but believe me: he will be back."

"I want him to come back **now**," Sasuke whined, snuffling.

"I know you do," she whispered and knelt down so she could embrace him properly. "I'm sure that he wishes to come home too, but this is a really important mission, and those things take time."

"But he's been gone for almost two weeks now!"

"Those things take time," she repeated and kissed his cheek. Her expression fell even more when her younger son quickly closed the little distance that had gotten between them because of her last action, and he buried his face in her hair as he fought against tears, mumbling something about how time wasn't fair.

Deciding that they could linger just a little longer, Mikoto comfortingly rubbed his back as she held him even closer. Looking over his shoulder, she saw the same things she had seen ever since she had needed to come here to pick him up when another day without Itachi was over: tic-tac-toe grids traced in the dirt from when he had played against himself out of sheer boredom, various doodles of random things, and quite a few messy swirls where he had written Itachi's name or one of the terms of endearment. It pictured all too clearly how much Sasuke missed the elder, and yet whenever Mikoto saw what her son had done while he waited at the gates, it touched her anew, almost overwhelming her at times.

"We should be on our way now before your father gets worried," she finally spoke.

"O-Okay, okasan," Sasuke agreed and let go of her, albeit somewhat reluctantly.

Smiling warmly, she took his hand in hers, and together they began to walk away from the gates. Of course, she didn't fail to notice how Sasuke looked back a couple of times until they had rounded a corner and the gates had vanished from sight.

"Sasuke-chan… I know you always miss Itachi when he has to go on missions, but this time you seem to miss him more than ever. Is there a particular reason for that?" she asked with hinted hesitance.

"Yeah. He… Aniki promised me that as soon as he is back, he would spend an entire day with me, regardless of what others might want from him," Sasuke answered, remembering his brother's words, the words he had been told upon saying goodnight to the elder before Itachi would depart early the next morning.

"I can imagine that your father might beg to differ," Mikoto remarked as they passed the ramen shop, where they both waved at Teuchi before what little light had reached them made way for the darkness of the night again.

"That's what I said too, but aniki insisted that he would keep his promise," Sasuke assured her. As he said this, a smile that mirrored his anticipation lit up his face. Mikoto gladly took notice of this – she definitely preferred to see Sasuke happy instead of sad.

"That's nice, dear. But how about if you would spend tomorrow's time differently than simply waiting at the gates?"

"But okasan, I don't wait at the gates **all** the time!" Sasuke protested. "Naruto always comes along eventually and drags me to the ramen shop! How can someone eat so much ramen?" he wondered. He sounded annoyed, but Mikoto could tell that it wasn't genuine annoyance; Sasuke most probably didn't mind the distraction all that much.

The rest of the walk home, the discussion continued in a similar fashion. It was a welcome change to the quite depressing walks of the other three days. When they got home, Fugaku was waiting for them. Sasuke yawned heartily and bade his father goodnight, receiving a short ruffle of his hair, then he went to his room to get ready and later get tucked in by his mother.

"Waiting at the gates again?" Fugaku asked his wife.

"Yes. He just misses Itachi so much…"

"So I presume, but why won't he see that just waiting there won't make him come back any faster?"

"He's looking forward to his return more than ever this time," Mikoto replied. "And besides, this is the longest absence of Itachi yet."

Nevertheless, Fugaku shortly shook his head, not quite understanding his younger son's notion. Smiling, Mikoto gave him a quick kiss before she went to put Sasuke to bed so he could get some rest before he would wait again the next day.

**(word count: 1,100)**

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As usual, I'm looking forward to reviews. You guys are simply the best...!

That would be all for this input from me. Until next time, take care! ;)


	11. Prompt 50: Breaking the Rules

Ah, another example for a story whose inspiration came from a picture! Hehe, that's one of my favorite pics... ;)

Enjoy, my treasured readers!

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**Prompt #50: ****Breaking The Rules**

"Honey, have you seen Itachi?" Fugaku asked when he came home from work.

"He went for a walk with Sasuke," Mikoto answered as she prepared dinner.

"Again?"

"As brothers, they still should be entitled to spend some time together."

"Oh, alright…"

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

Elsewhere in Konoha, Itachi and Sasuke entered a place they were quite familiar with: one of the few empty apartments in the village. Until someone would move in, they secretly claimed it as **their** special place.

"You know this is wrong, don't you?" Itachi asked as he closed the door behind them.

"You ask me that every time we come here. And then I always answer the same thing: maybe it is. But I like it, so that's why I do it anyway. That's why **we** do it anyway."

"That's why we do it anyway," Itachi repeated somewhat absently.

"Aniki… are you regretting it?" Sasuke asked, sitting down on an old mattress they had brought here.

"Not exactly… it's just that I'm wondering how long we can keep this going on before we get caught. Because that's what always happens eventually when one does forbidden things," Itachi answered thoughtfully as he regarded his six-year-old brother.

"You think too much. Please; not today, Itachi," Sasuke begged and spread his arms in a nonverbal plea for his sibling to come to him.

Without another word, Itachi crossed the small room and entrusted himself to Sasuke's embrace as he brought their lips together in a tender kiss.

'_You say that every time I get this feeling, otouto. But__ then again, maybe you're still too young to understand this train of thoughts,'_ the young prodigy mused before he pushed his reasonable, contemplative part aside and deepened the kiss. As usual, he couldn't withstand his craving that came from deep inside, the craving that most people frowned upon because in their opinion, it was breaking the unwritten rules of society.

However, other people's opinions were the last thing on the minds of the two Uchihas as they let their desires overcome them and continued to kiss each other more feverishly and more passionately.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

A lone six-year-old was walking through that particular part of the village, thinking about his greatest dream in life.

"I'm gonna be the Hokage someday, dattebayo!" he told himself encouragingly as he puffed out his chest importantly and straightened the goggles on his head, all the while smiling like a bright light bulb on a Christmas tree. His positive attitude got dampened a bit when he reminded himself how alone he was, though. In order to become Hokage, one needed proper connections… and friends. He had always wanted friends. But people avoided him because of a certain beast that was sealed within him. Still; he wasn't one who gave up. Not in a million years.

"I know!" he suddenly said loudly, not talking to anybody in particular (this was considered absolutely normal behavior for him), "Maybe I can ask him to play with me… what's his name, dattebayo…?" He briefly racked his brains for the name he was missing, then he snapped his fingers. "Ah yes: Sasuke! Yeah, I'll go ask Sasuke!"

Inside the house the loud-mouthed blond was standing in front of, a certain dark-haired boy pricked up his ears. "Someone just said my name," he muttered.

"I know. I'm sure I did just before…" Itachi breathed, his voice husky with desire as he nibbled on the youngster's earlobe.

"No, really; someone's talking about me. I wonder who," Sasuke insisted and interrupted the make-out session in progress. Itachi growled in the back of his throat, already cursing whichever intruder was out there. Feeling that he might need to defend his actions, he stood up as well and followed Sasuke like a shadow. They rarely left this apartment without fixing themselves up again, which certainly was essential – but this time, both of them forgot that.

"Who are you and why did you say my name?" Sasuke asked when he opened the door to find a boy he dimly remembered from his academy class standing in the street.

"I'm Naruto, dattebayo! We're in the same class, remember? Hey, wanna hang out a bit?"

If Sasuke remembered one thing about the Hokage-wannabe, it definitely was the "dattebayo" part.

"Um, well…" he began.

"He's busy right now," Itachi replied darkly, wrapping his arms around Sasuke's waist. His onyx eyes flashed red with the Uchiha clan's kekkei genkai, the Sharingan. When Naruto just tilted his head in confusion, Itachi nuzzled Sasuke's cheek with his nose. "Otouto, we're not finished yet…"

"Ngh… some other time, Naruto. I'm coming already, aniki!" He gasped when Itachi maneuvered him away from the door, licking his jawbone before kicking the door shut with his foot.

Outside, Naruto just smiled goofily and had just taken one step on his further way, but his second foot had barely left the ground when he froze as if in paralysis.

"What the hell, dattebayo?! **Otouto**?! **Aniki**?!" he wondered. For the world to hear, of course. Even his at times really simple brain could make a link between those terms of endearment and the actions he had briefly seen: that possessiveness, the sensual lick of that tongue… that went beyond brotherly love! As if stung by an adder, Naruto whirled around and crashed through the door. But the room behind it was empty.

However, the window on the far end of the room was open. It was self-explaining. The same could be said for Itachi's final words to the blond as the elder suddenly came into view:

"Don't tell **anyone**!" he hissed. Then he vanished, and by the time Naruto looked out the window, the brothers had already rounded a corner and were gone.

"See? What did I tell you?" Itachi said as they ran.

"So we broke this rule… We follow all the others, though," Sasuke retorted matter-of-factly.

"You like breaking the rules?" Itachi concluded.

"This one, yes," Sasuke answered with a smile as he followed his brother with his hand being held tightly.

**(word count: 1,000)**

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Hope you liked it!

Review, please! _(puppy-eyes)_


	12. Prompt 65: Horror

I wrote this VERY late at night. Just... don't ask. I considered it very funny to write, but whether you guys get that impression too, remains to be seen. I admit that the whole "horror" part is one-sided, but what the heck... a prompt is a prompt. Check it out!

(Might contain a bit of SasuNaru, if you want it to - you'll see what I mean.)

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**Prompt #65: ****Horror**

"Ah, that's what I call a refreshing hike! Don't you agree, honey?" Fugaku asked when they stopped on the shoulder of a small mountain. They would camp here for a week – "they" being the whole Uchiha family plus a friend of Sasuke's.

"Indeed," Mikoto agreed with a cheerful smile, then turned around. "Boys, we're here – Good heavens!" Her eyes widened.

Standing there with a miniature thundercloud above his head was Itachi. He had looked perfectly fine when they had left the car behind, but now twigs were sticking out of his disheveled hair. More twigs and leaves decorated him all over, making him vaguely resemble a forest monster. Flanking him were Sasuke and Naruto, both of them merely sporting grass stains on their clothes, but nothing more.

Fugaku looked too, and he raised an eyebrow before beginning to pitch the adults' tent while asking casually: "Son, what happened to you?"

"Why don't you ask this little demon, mom's «sweetie-pie»?" Itachi retorted.

Sasuke blushed and glared at his brother when Naruto snorted with laughter. How dare he give away that Mikoto indeed called him that quite often?!

"Sasuke?" said mother prompted.

"You said that he's supposed to look out for us, and we helped him a bit," the raven answered.

"We didn't want to get attacked by bears when we walked through the woods, so we made a scare-bear," Naruto added.

Lightning flashed from the cloud as Itachi crossed his arms, his eyes blazing red. Despite that display of displeasure, however, Mikoto laughed while Fugaku hid his amusement. It didn't help that Naruto brightly thanked Itachi for protecting them while Sasuke gloated.

"Itachi, get your tent ready, then we'll go fetch some firewood," Fugaku instructed.

"Yes, dad," his older son grumbled. When his parents turned their backs on them, he cracked his knuckles. "There's no way in hell that I'm sleeping in the same tent with you two. I'd rather sleep beneath the stars."

"Suuuure you would," Sasuke jeered, "You're the first to complain if it rains."

"You're standing on very thin ice, little brother. Don't let it break beneath you," Itachi warned him cryptically as he got to work on the tent. Naruto tapped his temple, glancing at Sasuke, who just shrugged it off. His lack of worry had its reason: ever since he had been tricked into trying to bungee-jump from the roof, Mikoto had never failed to save her younger son from Itachi's excessive vengeance fits…

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

Later, Itachi's parents were preparing dinner over the campfire while their treasured son was writing his will, hunched over his very private notepad with the metallic red skull on front.

Sasuke and Naruto were a little further down the hill, fencing with some sharpened sticks they would later use to grill their marshmallows. Where they got all their energy from, Itachi didn't know. They had been romping around ever since they had set up camp, rolling downhill and laughing when their clothes got stained. And when a giggle from his sibling reached his ears, Itachi shook his head: Sasuke often was goofy in his own special way – he **was** the younger one of them – but when Naruto was around, he almost seemed to adopt the blond's goofiness. And given the fact that Naruto visited them more and more often, Itachi was beginning to fear that that adoption would have lasting effects.

"Ha! Gotcha!" Sasuke cried triumphantly, faking to stab his friend with the stick.

"Ack! I'm dying!" Naruto exclaimed and collapsed dramatically – though it almost was more like he tackled Sasuke, taking him down as well. Laughing, they fell into the grass and proceeded to…

Itachi raised an eyebrow as he watched them. From where he was, it was rather hard to determine whether they were strangling or cuddling each other. If it was the first option, maybe there was a small chance that he would have a tent for himself (good; then he wouldn't have to worry about rain)! But:

"Boys, remember that playing rough is only fun until someone gets hurt!"

Apparently, Mikoto had noticed the ongoing action as well.

"We're not being rough, mom!" Sasuke yelled back before he rolled over so he was on top.

Not quite giving up his faint hopes, Itachi turned back to his will. To whom would he leave his pajamas with the glow-in-the-dark kittens…?

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

"You've had it long enough, now let **me** have it!"

"No, I'm not through yet!"

"Hey, I don't wanna just watch you all the time!"

"Oh, shush and pay attention: I'll show you a trick! Watch!"

Silence. Then:

"Ooh, that's cool! How did you do that?"

"Just watch my fingers…"

Itachi sat up in his sleeping bag and glared at the tent which hadn't been his in the end, after all. A circle of light bobbed back and forth on the tent's walls, ever so dimly illuminating the two figures that were still very much awake. Sighing, the older Uchiha checked the display on his digital watch. Midnight. In other words: way past the bedtime of nine-year-olds. Plus, he couldn't sleep because of them…

"You asked for it, you little devils. I **told** you the bogeyman would come get you if you didn't go to sleep…" Itachi muttered darkly as he stood up and strolled over to the nearby woods, careful not to make a sound. Quickly, he gathered some twigs and "decorated" himself with them, also covering his face with some mud he found. After adding some leaves for the final touch, he crept towards the tent, deliberately stepping on twigs and making bushes rustle. He grinned evilly when the spot of light stopped moving. As he drew closer, he briefly saw how the two shadows huddled closer together before the light went out.

**Perfect.**

Itachi activated his Sharingan (mentally making a note to jot down this alternate use of his family's kekkei genkai) and put on his best monster act as he crept around the tent.

"Sasuke… w-what d-d'you think t-that is…?" a shaky voice asked.

"I… I'm not s-sure," another voice whispered back, sounding just as scared. "I just h-hope it's not… not…"

Itachi chose that precise moment to yank the entrance flap aside and snarl: "RAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWWRRRRRRRR!"

"KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA-AAAAAAAAAA-AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!"

Two blood-curdling screams pierced the nightly silence, and Itachi was bowled over by Sasuke and Naruto, who bolted out of the tent. Like a bat out of hell, the youngsters unceremoniously crashed into the adults' tent, and both parents yelped in surprise.

"Mom! Dad! Help us!"

"It's the bogeyman!"

Then, in unison: **"He's gonna eat us!"**

Where he still lay spread-eagled on the ground, Itachi burst out laughing. He laughed long and loud and was positively **cackling** with glee. Okay; his little action was far from bringing him the sleep he had initially craved, but the look on Sasuke and Naruto's faces while they clung to each other in utmost terror had totally been worth it. And those screams…! He vowed never to forget them. He continued to laugh insanely even when his angry parents came rushing out of their tent, followed by two very shaken boys – and vaguely, he had a feeling that the stars above were twinkling merrily, as if they were laughing along with him.

**(word count: 1,200)**

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As I said before: don't ask what made me write this. It just happened.

Please share your opinions with me! Now I really gotta go to bed, though... XD


	13. Prompt 36: Midnight

****Alright, folks, brace yourselves - this prompt doesn't feature neither one of the Uchiha brothers! _(gasp)_

Yep, that's right - this is a SasoDei oneshot, requested by **Art is a bang XD**! I hope you'll like it; I had written the first few sentences, but then had to wait for inspiration to return to me again, and finally I could complete it! I hope you don't mind that I couldn't resist including a bit of fluff... (sigh)

_"Yes, it's true; I'm so happy to be stuck with you_

_Because I can see that you're happy to be stuck with me."_

- Huey Lewis & The News, "Stuck With You"

(You guessed right: the inspiration I needed to finish this came to me when I heard this song during dinner! I love that CD, the songs are great for background music and... er... non-background music...!)

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**Prompt #36: ****Midnight**

With a deeply frustrated sigh, Sasori regarded the glowing display of the digital alarm clock next to the bed. It read 12 AM.

Somebody tugged at the blanket, and with a growl, Sasori gave a tug as well so the blanket wouldn't get yanked from his grasp.

"Quit hogging the blanket!" he hissed.

"Me? **You're** the one doing all the hogging, un! I've barely got enough!" an annoyed voice retorted heatedly.

"You think **I** don't? It's barely covering my shoulder!"

"Well, ditto, un!"

"Why am I stuck with you again, anyway?" Sasori wondered, glaring at the alarm clock.

To his slight surprise, there was no immediate response, and the blanket was spared from getting torn apart as a certain blond loosened his grip. An awkward silence filled the room. Sasori was just about to ask if his partner had nothing more to say when a rather hurt-sounding voice inquired:

"You don't like being partnered with me, danna, un?"

Sasori rolled his eyes. "I didn't mean it like that. It's just that it's always the same old story when we have to stay in a hotel: you hog the damn blankets again!"

"Only because you hog them too, un!"

"But you hog… oh, whatever! We're not getting anywhere like this!" Sasori huffed.

"Hn, un." Again, there was a moment of silence before the other "blanket-hogger", Deidara, spoke up:

"Danna, d'you think it would help if we wouldn't sleep at the exact opposite edges of the bed?"

Sasori didn't move as he thought about that for a moment, then he rolled onto his back and looked over at Deidara. Sure enough, there were three feet of unoccupied space between them, and because of that, the blanket wasn't touching the mattress anymore. Sasori frowned at the ceiling instead of the clay-bomber.

"How do I know that you won't bite me for whichever reason?"

"Bite you, un?" Deidara repeated incredulously and rolled over as well. The blanket dropped onto the mattress between them. "Why the hell would I bite you? I mean, have you ever bitten a tree, un? Wood doesn't have that great of a taste –"

"Sheesh, I just wanted you to answer my question, not lecture me on the taste of wood!" Sasori interrupted.

"It's rude to interrupt people when they're talking, un!" Deidara huffed.

"Oh yeah? Well, it's also rude to almost blow up the hideout just because of the organization's very own national day."

"But I was so excited, un! I couldn't help it! I didn't mean to actually harm anyone!" Deidara protested.

"Let's not get into that discussion again. So, are you gonna bite me or not? Keep in mind that I'm also referring to the mouths on your hands," Sasori reminded him.

"You can trust me, danna; I promise, un!" Deidara replied and graced Sasori with puppy-eyes – or more specifically, **a** puppy-eye, since only one eye was visible.

The puppet master raised both eyebrows at that look, and just when Deidara stepped it up a notch, letting fake tears well up in his eye, the redhead exhaled loudly and inched a bit closer to his partner until he was lying in the middle of his half of the double-bed.

"Alright already; you got me. That you'd stoop to crocodile tears…"

He silenced when Deidara gave a quiet cheer, and a split second later, a shoulder touched his own when there was close to no more distance between them. For a moment, neither one moved, but then Deidara shifted. Before Sasori could ask why, the other muttered contently:

"Now there's more than enough blanket for me. Do you have enough too, danna, un?"

Now it was Sasori who shifted as he tucked in the blanket underneath his shoulder with ease. "Yeah," he answered.

"You know, it was rather cold before, un," Deidara remarked.

They lay close enough together that Sasori could make out a faint blush on his partner's cheeks. If he hadn't been a puppet himself, that quite adorable look would have made him blush as well. But since he was a puppet, all Sasori could do now was smile – and that he did. In a genuine fashion.

"But you're not cold anymore, are you?"

"Un… not as much. Thanks for asking, danna."

As Sasori's smile became positively radiant, one of his hands found Deidara's underneath the blanket. Squeezing it carefully, he spoke:

"I really am happy to be stuck with you, Deidara. Don't forget that."

The blush returned full-force to the blond's face, and with an overjoyed smile on his part, he bedded his head on Sasori's shoulder.

"You know that I'm glad to be your partner too, un… right?" he murmured.

"Yes," Sasori whispered, and as they began to fall asleep, he thought about how this was a pleasantly new outcome of a midnight argument.

**(word count: 800)**

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Eheh... _(sweatdrop)_ hope you liked it despite the sappiness. I just couldn't help it! Feel free to behead me...


	14. Prompt 72: Snow

I know it's probably a bit early for a fic that takes place in that special time of year _(wink wink)_, but I just couldn't resist after finding an oh-so-KAWAII pic: Sasuke was Naruto's Christmas present... _(is a bit happer again just by thinking of the picture)_

Enjoy!

(Perhaps I should point out something: this is slightly AU - which means that in this story, the Uchiha clan wasn't massacred.)

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**Prompt #72: Snow**

"Why am **I** the one who's wearing this?!"

"Because **you** are the one who somehow managed to lose his hat, foolish little brother. Why are you complaining, anyway?"

"Because I look dorky."

"Nonsense. You don't look dorky. You look **cute**."

"Ah! Stop it, Itachi!"

Laughing, Sasuke Uchiha tried to fend off his older brother, who was playfully pinching his cheek. Of course, since he was fidgeting quite a lot, his hat almost slid off his head. Itachi gave in to Sasuke's plea just in time to catch the hat and put it on the latter's head again, trying to cram most of the uniquely stubborn hairdo under it.

Even though it wasn't a very long walk to the nearest training grounds, it was impossible to oversee how Konohagakure was even livelier at this time of year. There were garlands of blinking lights everywhere, many middle-sized fir trees flanked the entrances to numerous houses, and not few windows had been decorated with star-shaped stickers. It was the time of year in which even the grumpiest of people were most likely to smile. The favorite time of year for most children.

Christmas.

Sasuke enjoyed this time of year too because in the absolute majority of the cases, his brother as well as most of the other Jounin got quite a bit of time off to spend with their families. And this year, Itachi had even managed to sidestep their stern father, Fugaku, who was less than thrilled when his older son allowed himself to slip out of his dutiful role for a while to make up for all the time he wasn't at home – for when that happened, Itachi mused, Sasuke would still act like a sweet little five-year-old, even though he was just about to officially be called a teenager.

"What do you want to do first, otouto?" the elder Uchiha asked when they reached their destination.

"Let's make a snowman!" Sasuke suggested brightly, seemingly having forgotten his discomfort about the hat he was wearing.

"You haven't changed a bit," Itachi remarked with a chuckle as they began to pack the snow together until they could really start rolling it around. All the while, Itachi could barely save himself from Sasuke's questions – the younger Uchiha wanted to know as much as he would get told. Whatever Itachi told him, it seemed to fuel his desire more and more to be as successful as the elder someday.

"I'll go find some twigs – I daresay our snowman should have arms, don't you think?" Itachi asked, interrupting his sibling's interrogation after a lot of work.

"Yeah, definitely! And I'll try and make it even bigger in the meantime, aniki!"

'_If Father saw him now…'_ Itachi thought as he graced Sasuke with a smile, then straightened the younger one's hat again before strolling off to find the aforementioned twigs.

Softly humming a tune under his breath, Sasuke continued to work on the snowman until barking reached his ears, followed by a loud laugh.

"Well, will you look at that! I guess this isn't called the season of miracles for nothing… Nice hat, Sasuke! Shikamaru, don't you have a camera on you?"

Replacing his cheerful smile with a frown, Sasuke turned around to find three people admiring the unusual addition to his winter attire: Naruto, Shikamaru and Kiba. Akamaru was bounding around the trio, yipping happily.

"And go through all the trouble? You wish," Shikamaru drawled.

"Aw… but who knows when we'll see this again! Sasuke Uchiha – **the** Sasuke – wearing a Santa hat!" Kiba sniggered.

"You got a problem with that?" Sasuke asked darkly. If he had had the choice, he wouldn't have worn a hat at all, but his mother always insisted on that in winter. And God knew that somehow, she would find out if he would dispose of the hat, even if it was only for a while…

"I dunno… on you, it just looks… dorky!"

"Say that again. I dare you to," Sasuke threatened, balling his gloved hands to fists.

Before anyone could advise Kiba to let it be, the Genin in question walked up to Sasuke and circled him once, humming every now and then, before stopping and holding up a finger while saying in a semi-grave manner:

"Sasuke, listen carefully when I tell you with utmost sincerity… You. Look. Dorky."

Needless to say, things happened fast after that comment: Sasuke pounced on Kiba, losing his hat in the process but not caring at all. Kiba burst out laughing and couldn't stop, even when he really began to wrestle with his peer. Akamaru barked loudly, presumably cheering for Kiba.

"How troublesome…" Shikamaru sighed in annoyance and pointedly looked away.

"He should've known that Sasuke-teme doesn't like being called «dorky»," Naruto said, folding his hands behind his head.

"He knew that, Naruto. Kiba's not that retarded."

"…Really?"

"Ugh…" Shikamaru scoffed.

"Is that all you've got?" Kiba taunted, regardless of the fact that both of them had already gotten lots of snow inside their jackets. Both mothers would throw a fit when their sons would get home (though Mikoto's fit would probably be worse).

"It's far from over!" Sasuke snarled back.

"Whoa… Otouto, you're fighting when it's almost Christmas? Santa will give you a lump of coal for this," a familiar voice interrupted.

Kiba and Sasuke paused to look up at Itachi, who was brandishing a twig at them like an accusing finger.

"He started it," Sasuke muttered, then drew back after glaring at Kiba one last time.

Itachi had heard tales about his brother getting into brawls with «dog-boy» before, and when he saw the abandoned Santa hat lying in the snow, he could immediately imagine what had been the cause this time.

"I think enough damage to the season's spirit has been done now. Perhaps it would be better if you left now," Itachi told the other boys.

"Whatever. Kiba, sometimes you're just so hopeless!" Shikamaru grumbled as he, Kiba and Akamaru followed Itachi's advice.

"Don't be such a grouch! It was just a bit of fun! And **zounds** – you didn't call me troublesome?!"

"Whatever…"

Itachi ran his fingers through Sasuke's hair to rid it of the snow that had gotten caught in the strands. "Come now, otouto, smile again! Don't tell me that your entire mood got crushed just because of whatever happened before…"

"I knew that wearing that hat was a bad idea," Sasuke sulked, thrusting his hands into his pockets.

"Hey teme, you dropped this," a voice said from behind him.

Sasuke whirled around to find Naruto holding the red-and-white hat and wearing his trademark grin.

"I'm not putting that on again," the raven stated stubbornly.

"Eh, you know Kiba; he just likes to fool around with you! And if you ask me, you don't look all that dorky in that thing," Naruto told him as he quickly put the hat on the rightful owner's head again.

"That's what I told him too. I still think it looks cute," Itachi grinned.

"Aniki!" Sasuke hissed.

"You said it."

"Naruto!" Sasuke exclaimed, noticing with slight discomfort that his cheeks had turned pink or maybe even red.

"What? It's just the truth," his blond friend insisted and spontaneously hugged Sasuke before jogging after the others, waving back at the brothers as he went.

"Well… this is interesting," Itachi said slyly as he got a good look at his sibling's flustered expression.

"I don't know what you're talking about. Now give me those twigs already," Sasuke mumbled and snatched them from his brother's hands in order to have a good excuse to turn away.

Itachi suppressed a laugh as he brushed some snow off Sasuke's shoulders before helping to finish the snowman as well. However, he planned to take up this new issue again later on in front of a crackling fire…

**(word count: 1,300)**

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I just couldn't help it... if I were in charge of the weather, we could skip the rest of summer and fall (I love winter!)... not to mention that I'd demand a winter wonderland on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day (it's too late if the snows comes in January and we have had a green Christmas, Saint Pete, ya hear?!)!

Oops... sorry, got carried away there! _(sweatdrop)_

Review if you wanna make me happy! :)


	15. Prompt 37: Eyes

I have been wondering for a long time when I should post this one...

Warning: this is the first prompt I wrote when I created the "100 themes challenge" document (not knowing that I would post it yet)!! I wrote this before I informed myself of what would happen later on in the plot - just thought I should point that out, even though the way this following encounter occurs is weird in itself. Like I said, this was practically my first Naruto "fanfic" ever, and since I'm not the type who can just ditch something, I've decided to give it a shot...

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**Prompt #37: Eyes**

A year had passed now, and Sasuke wondered if he would ever achieve his goal as he gazed at the ceiling from where he lay on the couch of his flat. Perhaps he had been too rash, since he obviously still wasn't strong enough… However, he hadn't given up yet. He would have to find him again. Find him and track him down. And then… he would strike…

Unfortunately, he hadn't heard much about Akatsuki for quite a while now. It was beyond doubtful that they had refrained from their criminality, but perhaps they were just going through a calmer phase to keep a low profile for a while before attacking out of the blue. But only one member of Akatsuki had Sasuke's full and undisputed attention: his own brother, Uchiha Itachi. The murderer of the entire Uchiha clan, spare Sasuke and himself. He who had once been Sasuke's idol and had chosen to abandon him instead.

It was Sasuke's goal to kill him and get revenge. After all, Itachi himself had assigned him that task. But after his most recent failure, there was no telling when he would get another opportunity so quickly – looking for and actually **finding** Itachi was as likely as finding a snowman in midsummer. He –

A soft knocking sounded out at his door. Since the only other noise was the night's silence, Sasuke heard it easily enough and postponed his musings for now.

"Coming," he grunted as he stood up and slouched to the door. He wasn't in the mood to see anyone. This notion of his was sent to the dogs when he opened the door, though; he froze, and his black eyes widened in surprise. His lips parted, but no words came forth, for too unexpected was the sight of the visitor on his doorstep.

Standing there in his now slightly tattered Akatsuki cloak was Uchiha Itachi. He looked like he had undergone a lot of stressful traveling. His usually stoic face was a single mask of tiredness, and his ponytail had come loose as a few long, stray hair strands fluttered around his shoulders. Eyes that had gone back to their usual black color instead of the Sharingan's red were looking at the "avenger", though a closer look would have revealed that they were staring at a spot just above Sasuke's head.

A dreadful silence filled the air, making it feel almost heavy, but then Sasuke finally got a grip again and hissed:

"…**You**!"

"Good evening, Sasuke." Even Itachi's voice sounded tired.

"Good evening?! What the hell is **that** supposed to mean?" the younger Uchiha spat.

"Exactly what it always means. It has been a year now, little brother… and yet it seems like a much longer time."

"Have you come to settle the score?" Sasuke asked, wishing he would have a kunai on him.

"No. I just… wanted to come to you."

That response sounded oddly helpless, and Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "I don't get it. I want to kill you; why would you possibly want to come to me?"

"In just a year, many things can change –"

It was then that Sasuke noticed something about the way they were interacting: "Look at me when you're talking to me, dammit!"

Itachi sighed, and his left hand gripped the cloak more tightly. "I **am** looking at you, am I not?"

"No. You're looking at the door."

"Oh." Itachi thought for a moment, then shifted his head a bit and blinked. "Better now?"

Heaviness spread in Sasuke's chest as he realized the unfamiliar emptiness of those eyes. And it was **not** better: Itachi was staring past his shoulder, as if he couldn't see him.

"Itachi, why won't you look at me?" he asked, noticing with dismay that his voice shook, thus making him sound like a younger boy again.

"Sasuke, do you remember what Father told us about the Mangekyou Sharingan's effects if it's used frequently?"

That he did… but what…? When he understood the connection, Sasuke's eyes widened some more, and he whispered: "You're… going blind?"

Itachi bowed his head. "Worse; I practically **am** blind. I am no longer of use to Akatsuki, which is why I left them. I am tired, Sasuke. My days as a ninja are counted. Kill me if you want; I won't put up a fight."

Strangely enough, Sasuke felt nothing of his original desire. Seeing his aniki broken like this… unwilling to go on… having become blind in the meantime… No, he wouldn't get revenge if he would kill him now. The question was: would he be able to jump over his own shadow and allow… a new beginning with his brother…? As he wondered about this and got lost in Itachi's absent stare, Sasuke couldn't stop a tear from leaking out of his eye.

**(word count: 800)**

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Was it kinda dumb? Now that I read it with all I know, it does seem like that to me. But what the heck; a first try is a first try. Do what you want with this.

On a happier note: dad sent me a math problem, and I managed to solve it! Yay! Okay, so I failed twice before I got the right answer (which would be the code to opening an Excel file), but still, I was rather proud! But boy, it sure reminded me why I hate word math problems _(barf)_... always hated them and always will... XD


	16. Prompt 93: Annoyance

Gee, guys, thank you so much for the positive feedback on the last chapter... I had really thought it was rather crappy, but according to you, it wasn't, and the way in which you told me that was so reassuring... somehow... forgive me, I can't describe it properly, but let's just say that I was a very, **very** happy girl when I checked my emails in the morning! :)

And now, chapter 16! I can't believe I've already posted so many chapters in such short time... almost daily updates so far. Wow.

I know, the whole "camping" idea is anything but new, but I just couldn't resist! And again, I'll torment Itachi a bit (still love ya, though, don't get me wrong, Itachi! XD)...

Hope you'll enjoy this one as well!

Warning: don't ask what made me include the songs that are mentioned in this oneshot. I wish I could claim that I was high on something or likewise, but I wasn't. (lol) Either it was my coffee (can't quite picture that) or this is yet again the result of late-night writing (more probable)...

Disclaimer: I don't own the songs mentioned later on!

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**Prompt #93: Annoyance**

"There; that should be enough. Let's go back. If we need more, we can move out later again."

"Why don't you just send the kids to do that?"

"Naruto said that they'd be fine with pitching the tent, Kakashi."

"Just remember that it's **Naruto** who said that, Itachi."

The other Jounin cast him a rather confused look, then they headed back to the campsite – of course, Itachi was carrying most of the wood while Kakashi had gathered only a handful, thanks to his ever-present distraction of Icha Icha Paradise. As soon as they were back, Itachi saw exactly why he would never listen to Naruto ever again when they went camping:

"Naruto, you idiot, can't you do **anything** right?!"

"Don't yell at me! I'm pretty sure this is fine!"

"Sakura is right! This will never hold!"

"Like **you** could do it better, teme…!"

With equally annoyed sighs, Sasuke and Sakura abandoned their construction and tried to steal the instruction/field manual from their blond friend, who protested at the top of his voice. This made Sasuke and Sakura yell too…

So much for the peacefulness of nature.

"Told you so," Kakashi said.

Itachi stared. He had guessed that they would be able to pitch the tent in the meantime, but the current construction resembled a pathetic teepee more than anything else. A little gust of wind was all it would take to blow it over. And in front of it, three seven-year-olds were brawling over the essential manual.

"Aniki, aniki! Naruto's messing everything up! Tell him he's an idiot!" Sasuke begged, freeing himself from the tangle of limbs and running to his older brother.

"Hold your horses, otouto. Enough of this!" Itachi commanded, dropping the wood and separating Sakura and Naruto from each other. "Honestly, I thought you got along well!"

"But we're supposed to set up camp, and he's just goofing off…!"

"They just don't trust that I'm gonna be the greatest ninja someday **and** give them proper instructions…!"

"Enough!" Itachi repeated louder than before. "Change of plans: you make the fire, and Kakashi and I will pitch the tent. Can you do that without arguing or killing each other?" When Naruto and Sakura just glared at each other, the elder Uchiha asked again impatiently: "Can you do that?"

"…Yeah, whatever," the two grumbled, finally giving in.

Heaving a sigh, Itachi let them go, but still observed them until they started to pile up the wood in the improvised fireplace. Then he dismantled the pseudo-teepee and began to go about the job properly. After a while, he confiscated Icha Icha Paradise when he decided that a lot more help could be expected from Kakashi.

"Come on, Itachi, that's fighting dirty!" the other Jounin protested when that happened.

"Maybe, but we're in this together. Now, see your little book? You're not getting it back until we've pitched this tent. Until then, I'm holding Mr. Paradise hostage," Itachi said dangerously as he tucked the book in question into his vest.

"Shoot!" Kakashi exclaimed under his breath, but agreed to the terms (what else?) and assisted Itachi with the tent.

Just a few minutes later, three louder-getting voices signaled a new argument:

"Naruto, quit fooling around and let **me** do this! Remember: I'm the one who can breathe fire!"

"You wish, teme! I know I can get a fire going like this, so don't try and steal my show!"

"What show?! Let Sasuke do it already!"

'_This is supposed to be __**relaxing**__! Ha! Relaxation, my ass!'_ Itachi thought heatedly and rammed the last tent peg into the ground with more force than necessary before yelling over his shoulder: "Guys, I told you to get along! Don't make me come over there!"

"But Sasuke's being all cocky!"

"Am not! I can't help it that I'm an Uchiha, unlike you!"

"Hey, why don't you let **me** try for once?"

"No, Sakura!" the two young boys retorted in unison.

Itachi face-palmed and pulled a little orange book out of his vest. Reacting instantly, Kakashi held out his hands like a beggar. "I'll go get some more firewood. Kakashi, shut them up by the time I get back, otherwise I'll go nuts."

"Okay, sure, now please give me my book back."

"Remember: you have to shut them up, or I'll confiscate it again."

"I'm not a retard, you know."

"Hn."

As soon as the book was in its rightful owner's hands again, Kakashi's nose was buried in it, and with quick steps, Itachi headed into the forest around them again, planning not to return before sunset…

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

When it was dark, the gang was sitting around the blazing campfire, roasting marshmallows. After dinner, the young ones had barely even bickered anymore, so Itachi vaguely assumed that food was like a magic charm to them. Okay, so Naruto had complained that there wasn't any ramen, but that was beside the point. Now that everyone was getting along and things were peaceful, Itachi closed his eyes for a moment as he mentally told himself to relax. The time was right; his annoyance from earlier had subsided. But just when he felt the tension leave most of his muscles, someone tugged at his sleeve.

"Aniki? Hey, aniki!"

Sighing heavily, but not opening his eyes, Itachi asked: "What is it now, otouto?" _'There goes my peace. Sheesh.'_

"Can you sing us a song?"

Now his eyes flew open right away. "Sing you a song?! Like what?"

"The Campfire Song song!" Naruto suggested cheerfully, bouncing up and down where he sat on a log.

"The **what**?" Itachi inquired.

"Don't you remember? It was on a SpongeBob episode I showed you!" Sasuke reminded him.

"I can't believe you still watch that," Itachi muttered, watching the flames lick his marshmallow.

"Don't change the subject! So, how about it?" Sasuke persisted.

"Yeah, Itachi, do it! Please, please, please!" Naruto chimed in.

"Pretty please!" Sakura added. All three youngsters were fidgety with excitement and making puppy-eyes.

"No. No way. It has been a long day," Itachi disagreed.

"But you'll feel much better after that!"

"Please, Itachi!"

"We'll be good!"

"**No**," the Jounin insisted, gripping the stick in his hands even tighter. Just a bit more, and it would probably snap.

"Awwww…" the three of them went sadly. But that dejected attitude only lasted for a few blissful seconds before Naruto's face lightened up again.

"Hey guys, let's cheer Itachi up! Let's sing the other song!"

"Yes! The other song, the other song!" the other two cheered.

"Wait a moment… what «other song»?" Itachi asked suspiciously, eying each of them.

"Could you watch over our marshmallows?" Sakura asked, passing their sticks to Kakashi, who was absorbed in Icha Icha Paradise – yet he had heard enough that he had to try very hard not to grin broadly.

"Sure," he replied casually and acquainted his lonely marshmallow with three getting-golden-brown-and-crispy friends.

Itachi took careful notice how there was a major invasion of his private space going on as Sasuke and Naruto plopped down on either side of him, both boys putting an arm around his back and wearing insanely goofy smiles. And Mikoto Uchiha wondered why her older son claimed that cartoons could seriously screw with one's minds, as he had stated quite bluntly once… Well, **she** had never seen Sasuke grin like this before.

Sakura was clutching one of his knees, sporting that same cheerful-insane expression like her peers. Alright, now Itachi **really** was starting to feel uncomfortable…!

"Ready, Itachi?" Naruto asked eagerly.

"No."

"Let's do it! One, two, one two three four –!"

And then all three of them burst into song:

"_I'm so happy! AHA! Happy go lucky me! I just go my way, living everyday…!" _

Itachi clearly remembered when he had first heard that song – it had been the first time he had seen his otouto go completely nuts. He had actually had a nightmare about that the following night. And now it wasn't only Sasuke who was going nuts as the three did some odd dancing on the spot before prancing around the fire, always singing in their somewhat off-key fashion. Itachi stared dead ahead even though his eyeballs were beginning to dry out.

"Isn't it wonderful how they get along now?" Kakashi asked happily.

When he got no answer from the shocked Uchiha, he shrugged and returned to his lecture as Tiny Tim's song served as the weird lullaby for the forest that night.

**(word count: 1,400)**

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This is what you get when that song is played in iTunes and you suddenly get this silly but inspiring picture in your head...

Oh, and just so you are warned/informed: I probably won't update the very next day - I wanna write a couple more prompts and work some more on the next chapter for my other story so I'll have more reserves in case there would be a time when I won't be able to update frequently anymore (brace yourselves: when I'll have to start work in September, that **will** be the case)...

Hope you'll bear with me and send me a review for this! See ya next time! :D


	17. Prompt 90: Fire

I'm back again! Sheesh, that sounds as if I had been gone forever, but it was only a day without updates... sorry if I'm not making much sense, but I was up all night long doing what I said I'd do _(refers to last chapter)_. More or less. Anyway, I also found a song from a Coca Cola Light commercial, and it makes me want to dance and sing every time I hear it...! _(is very happy)_

Now, enough of that pointless rambling! When I posted the chapter "Snow", I was asked if there was a part two - then I decided that yeah, that's a great idea! So I set to work and wrote this! I hope it's somewhat good...

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**Prompt #90: Fire**

Sasuke supposed that Kiba was right – no, not about the statement that he looked dorky wearing a Santa hat, but rather when he had said that Christmas was a time for miracles. After all, which other expression would be more fitting for the fact that Mikoto hadn't noticed that her younger son hadn't been wearing a hat at all times?

But perhaps – just perhaps – she had simply chosen not to throw a fit because of that too, since she already did so when he walked through the door and she discovered that the clothes beneath his winter coat were damp.

After a brief rant and reminding him not to trifle with his health, she sent him to his room so he could change into dry clothes, and that was the end of that little argument. When Sasuke re-entered the living room, Mikoto greeted him with a warm, fluffy blanket and a cup of hot chocolate. Itachi was sitting on the couch closest to the fireplace, already provided with those things.

"Mom sure knows how to give a warm welcome to someone… literally," Sasuke said as he sat down next to his brother.

"Indeed… Are you warm again now, otouto? You were shivering in the end, after all…"

"Geez, don't you think that **one** mother hen in the house is bad enough?" Sasuke asked exasperatedly, though winking to indicate that he wasn't being entirely serious.

Itachi grinned and put an arm around his sibling. "I thought you **liked** that I look out for you."

"I'm just kidding, you dolt," Sasuke replied, letting his head drop onto Itachi's shoulder.

"I figured as much," Itachi smiled. A quiet, content sigh reached his ears, then both of them fell silent as they stared at the fire, each pursuing their own train of thoughts.

In his mind, Sasuke was back at the training grounds and reliving what had happened after his fight with Kiba. He imagined Naruto hugging him again… hearing how the blond said that he agreed with Itachi… _"What? It's just the truth."_ Sasuke almost spilled his hot chocolate when he really snuggled up against his older brother after getting carried away by the imagination that he was in **Naruto's** arms in front of a fire…

"I thought you had grown out of the 'aniki-is-my-teddy-bear' mode," a voice suddenly said.

"Hmm? Wha-…?" Sasuke blinked dazedly, wondering how Naruto could know about his 'people-can-be-teddy-bears-too' phase… unless… An awful suspense hit him, and he quickly looked up to see an inquisitive look on a face with lines – but those lines weren't traces of whiskers…

"Ah! Aniki… I… um… I don't know what got into me, but I wasn't dreaming of Naruto!" Sasuke tried to defend himself. Almost instantly, he covered his mouth with one hand and scooted away from Itachi, his black eyes wide with horror.

"…As I said before: this is interesting," Itachi remarked thoughtfully.

"I don't know what you're –" Sasuke began, looking away as a furious blush adorned his face.

"You know perfectly well what I'm talking about," Itachi cut him off, though not sounding stern at all. "And if you could see your cheeks right now… they look remarkably like tomatoes, which makes me thankful for the fact that you cannot eat yourself."

A nervous squeak of rather fake laughter was all he got from Sasuke, who gazed intently at the fire as if he were the first caveman who had discovered it. Shaking his head, Itachi deposited his cup on the table next to the couch, then gingerly put a hand on the younger one's shoulder. The reaction to this made the smile run away from his face: Sasuke flinched.

"Otouto…"

Sasuke swallowed and blinked once, still staring at the fire.

Itachi slid off the couch and lightly rested his hands on Sasuke's knees. Hesitant eye contact was established, and like before, one of them looked like a deer caught in the headlights.

"Sasuke, you do remember me telling you that I'll always be here for you if there's anything you want to talk about, right?" A nod showed him that his words weren't falling on deaf ears. "I know it's been quite a while since we last had a discussion like this because I'm not home very often, but now that I am here… perhaps we can talk about what's bothering you, for I do wish to keep my promise."

"I… I…" Sasuke stammered, but couldn't seem to get any further. He gripped his cup so hard that it looked as if he were trying to break it. Before that could happen, his brother gently pried the cup from his hands and placed it on the table as well. Once that was out of the way, Sasuke suddenly flung himself into Itachi's arms. The elder returned the embrace in a calmer fashion, and for a while, they just sat there, unmoving while the fire crackled behind them, thus providing the only noise in the living room.

Itachi's unwavering patience was rewarded when Sasuke muttered: "Aniki… I gotta tell you something…"

"I'm listening, otouto."

Sasuke freed himself from the embrace, took a deep breath and then confessed: "I… I like Naruto."

"«Like» is a very relative word. Are you sure that's the word you want to use?" Itachi inquired.

His sibling's face fell. "…No," he admitted. But he didn't say anything more.

"Let me guess: you love him?"

With a blank look as if he had only just gone mute and was in shock, Sasuke nodded.

"And… you're «in love» with him?"

The answer was an identical nod like the one before.

Itachi's mouth may have been little more than a straight line until then, but now a really warm, genuine smile played on his lips – it was a smile that made the few girls who had seen it before swoon, but nobody saw that smile as often as Sasuke.

"Aniki, do you… you know…" said boy began.

"…Do I approve, you wanted to say?" Itachi finished the sentence knowingly.

"Yeah."

The Jounin laughed shortly and ruffled Sasuke's hair. "I approve. Well, that wasn't so bad, now, was it? You seemed to be afraid of me, dare I say that."

"But you're right," Sasuke told him. When Itachi's expression returned to its familiar neutral state, he continued: "I haven't told anyone yet, and I was worried that you might start thinking differently of me."

"I see. I don't know how reassuring this might sound to you, but just by telling me that you're in love with someone of your own gender would never make me hate you or be disgusted. To make that happen, you'd have to go completely nuts and… I don't know…" He shrugged. "Kill the whole family or something."

Sasuke gawked at him. "That's horrible! I would never do that!"

"I was just kidding."

"Oh." A smile passed over his face, then the younger raven spoke in a hushed voice: "Itachi, I'm afraid… What will dad say when he finds out?"

"That I cannot say, but whatever he says, I promise to always support you."

"Could you… be present when I'll tell him?"

"Of course. Just tell me when you want to do that, and I'll do my very best to be there."

"Thanks, aniki."

"No problem."

To Itachi's slight relief, the worry ebbed away from Sasuke's face and got replaced with one of those "contagious" smiles. "Can I teddy-bear-hug you on that?"

A sigh. "Fine, but let's sit on the couch again, otherwise you'll knock us both into the fire."

"I'm not **that** impetuous…" Sasuke mock-pouted as they returned to the couch.

"Oh, trust me: you **are**," Itachi contradicted.

"Then so be it," Sasuke said with a shrug before he pulled Itachi into the notorious hug, of course adding the essential pinch of cuddling. A hand laid itself on his back, softly rubbing it in a soothing way.

"Do you already know what you'll get him for Christmas?" Itachi suddenly asked.

Sasuke's eyes flew open again. "Oh yeah; a present! I have been looking, but nothing seems special enough…!"

"Tomorrow, you and I will go look for something – how does that sound? Then we can also get presents for Mother and Father."

"Yay! That'd be great! Thanks, Itachi!" Sasuke cheered.

"You know I would do anything for you, otouto," Itachi whispered.

Sasuke hummed contently and then listened to the crackling of the fire until he fell asleep.

**(word count: 1,400)**

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Fluff, fluff, fluff... long live the fluff! I'm so glad that I got interested in the Naruto fandom and discovered the awesomeness that is Itachi and Sasuke! XD (I just **had** to get rid that off my chest, I'm sorry for being so silly!)

One thing more to end chapter 17 (17! My absolute lucky number! Boo-ya!): thank you all so much for your support! This project is going much better than I expected it to, and it's all thanks to you, my treasured reviewers! I owe you big time! _(glomps everyone)_


	18. Prompt 30: Boredom

Now for another short one... it feels weird to post this after quite a few "long" ones in a row. But I hope you'll like it anyway!

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**Prompt #30: Boredom**

"Sasuke…"

There was no response except for the scribbling of a pen.

"Sasukeeeeee…"

The scribbling got quicker, and a nose almost touched the paper.

"Sasuke!"

A very annoyed sigh could be heard, then the pen was slowly put down.

"**What**, Naruto? Geez, you're annoying…"

"I'm bored."

"Bored?! We're supposed to be solving problems! There's no time to be bored, dobe."

"But that's the point! Who needs this anyway? When will I ever need to form a stupid equation like this?"

"How should I know that? Now shut up and be bored somewhere else."

"Tough luck, buddy; I'm sitting beside **you**, so suck it up. And besides, maybe there's a chance that you're bored too. I mean, come on, do you **like** doing this?"

"No, I don't. But it has to be done, so **you** suck **that** up. Hmm… where was I…?"

Sasuke frowned when he suddenly realized that he had made a mistake: the problem didn't add up in the end. Great; now he would have to retrace his steps! Temporarily surrendering to the horror which was labeled «math», he cupped his chin in one hand and shot a weary glance at Naruto, who had just started to poke him with a pencil.

"Ah, now you're bored too, huh?" the blond asked eagerly.

"No. I made a mistake, but I'm not looking forward to locate it," Sasuke answered.

"Sasuke, entertain me."

"Excuse me?"

"No, no; **entertain** me. Play with me. C'mon, I know you'd much rather do that than deal with these boring problems…"

"Naruto, you're one of the worst in our class when it comes to math. You should be trying to improve."

Naruto grinned and winked. "Maybe, but I hate math and am known for it."

"Really? You mean you've noticed the look of dread our sensei gets every single time you hand in your papers?" Sasuke smirked.

Naruto simply shrugged, grinning from ear to ear in his carefree way. He had tipped his chair back, but now he leaned forward again and scribbled something onto a piece of scrap paper.

"What are you doing, dobe?" Sasuke asked, watching with mild interest.

Naruto muttered something, then proudly revealed his work: "Isn't this the most beautiful game of tic-tac-toe you've ever seen?"

"……You must be **really** bored."

"Well, duh! Let's play already!"

Pausing, Sasuke looked around, and when he saw that their teacher was completely engrossed in helping someone who was utterly screwed, he sighed exasperatedly. "It's in times like these when I don't understand myself anymore…"

"Sounds like you need a therapist." The math-hating blond knitted his brows as he closely examined the «X» Sasuke had drawn.

"Three guesses who it **won't** be." The raven couldn't believe that his peer was already taking so long to make his move. "Naruto… you're boring me…" he said with a false whine.

"Alright, alright already!" Naruto hastily drew an «O» in a very random spot. He groaned when he looked at the clock, where time ticked by at a snail's pace – or maybe even slower. Tuesdays (the day of double-math) were always the same.

"Hello-o! Earth to Naruto!" Sasuke called, elbowing his desk neighbor… who plunked his head down onto the table.

"Let's wait for the weekend," came a dejected mutter. The pencil was dropped.

Sasuke stared at him for a moment, then poked him in the ribs. With a startled yelp, Naruto toppled off his chair, which crashed to the floor as well. And while the class snickered and the teacher demanded discipline of them, Sasuke couldn't help but crack up.

The sure cure for boredom had a name.

Naruto.

**(word count: 600)**

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Down with math! Gah, that's the worst subject one can have in school...! Oh, and just as a little side note: that one thing Naruto said, "Let's wait for the weekend", I said that too once in math. My friend cracked up. I'm glad my math teacher didn't hear that - he was friendly enough, but he wasn't happy when people freely admitted that they hate math. And I had told him that during the "introduction phase" of the very first lesson! _(lol)_

Please review! Thank you!


	19. Prompt 43: Night

It's getting kinda hard to find prompts for the ideas I have... most of them just seem to be too negative. But I gotta find a way... somehow...

I'll use that brief interjection as an excuse, should anyone wonder why I chose this prompt (or maybe I'm just attaching a little too much importance to the title. But no matter what, this oneshot's pairing is ItaNaru and was requested by **-Nightly Halo-**. I do hope you like it...! (Oh, and by the way: this is AU.)

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**Prompt #43: Night**

_Yawn._

"Teme, don't fall asleep! What's the matter? Didn't have your coffee?"

"Funny that you should suggest that – after all, **you** broke the machine two days ago!"

"It was making weird noises!"

"You forgot to refill the water, dobe. And now please shut up; I don't want to argue about damn coffee machines at eleven pm in the airport."

"You should be happy! Itachi's finally back!" Naruto told him. He had been all smiles ever since he had woken up that morning, and even now, his expression hadn't changed a bit.

Sasuke mumbled something that sounded like gibberish as he closed his eyes and bowed his head.

Noticing a flickering overhead, Naruto looked up and whooped loudly when the information board read:

_Flight NH-726 from Paris. Scheduled time: 23.15. Actual time: 23.55. Gate: 2. Status: Landed._

"Yay, finally! Oh, please hurry up…!" Naruto whined, fidgeting and shifting from one foot to the other.

"You'll have to wait another ten minutes or so," Sasuke muttered, sleepily opening one eye.

"Whyyyyyyyyyyyy?"

"Deplaning and stuff. For God's sake, be patient for once…!"

"I haven't seen him in two months! How the hell am I supposed to be patient now?!"

"The same way you've been patient so far."

Naruto thought about that, then shrugged. "But I never **was** patient."

Sasuke looked at the ceiling and groaned. "Oh yeah; I forgot…"

"Teme, I'm gonna go nuts…!"

The younger Uchiha shot him a warning glance. "Keep your hands to yourself and get a grip, dobe. I'm not the one you want to grope."

"Thanks for the unnecessary reminder…"

"Hey, I'm not taking any chances when you're hyper like this."

"Whaddaya mean, »hyper«?!"

Maybe Sasuke had not wanted to continue the coffee machine argument from before, but he did continue this one for two reasons: firstly, it distracted him from his tiredness and his craving for some caffeine, and secondly, it would keep Naruto occupied and thus reduce the risk of him making a scene.

They became so engrossed in their bickering that they wouldn't have stopped all too soon if a deep, amused voice hadn't suddenly interrupted their "conversation":

"Well, this looks vaguely familiar… You two will never stop fighting, won't you?"

The two teens whirled around and came face-to-face with a tall man who wore his hair in a ponytail. His amusement could also clearly be seen in his black eyes as a smile played on his lips.

While Sasuke just shrugged as his distinctive smirk returned, Naruto brightened visibly and flung his arms around the older Uchiha in such a fierce hug that Sasuke almost wondered if his brother would end up with a few broken ribs after this joyous reunion.

But Itachi seemed to be perfectly fine as he let go of his suitcase and hugged Naruto back.

"Missed me?" he whispered, his voice laced with a hint of seductiveness.

"24/7," Naruto answered truthfully when the faint smell of Itachi's cologne reached his nose. God, how he had missed that…!

"My lovely kitsune… it makes me so happy that you came here to wait for me, even though it is quite late at night…" Itachi murmured before softly kissing Naruto's cheek.

"I told you I would come even if you would have landed at four am. It's your caffeine-deprived brother you should be worrying about."

"In a moment. There's something else I want to do first."

Having said that, Itachi proceeded to claim Naruto's lips in a tender yet passionate kiss. Not surprisingly, the teenager didn't protest at all and completely gave himself up to the Uchiha's touch. Neither one of them cared about the stares they received – in fact, they didn't even notice that at all. Sasuke did, but he was busier with keeping himself awake: he could barely keep his eyes open, and he mentally slapped himself every time he felt his chin make contact with his chest.

After an indefinable amount of time, a hand suddenly caught his chin just as it was about to drop onto his chest again, and after blinking a few times, he found himself looking into Itachi's mildly concerned face.

"Hello, otouto. My, my… don't you think you should give instant coffee another chance?"

"Are you nuts? I almost puked last time – I'm taking no chances," Sasuke answered thickly.

Itachi looked back at Naruto and lightly rubbed his waist. "How about if we make a little detour and get ourselves some caffeine before we go home?"

"Sure, why not," Naruto told him. Right now, all that mattered to him was that Itachi was back – when they were together, a "detour" could go all the way to other end of the world and he would still be fine with it.

And so the trio walked off to the nearest restaurant. Naruto and Itachi had put an arm round each other's waists, and the elder Uchiha's other hand (which also pulled his suitcase) lightly pushed Sasuke along from where it rested on the small of his back.

"Tomorrow is Sunday, right?" Itachi asked his lover.

"Yeah. Convenient, eh?" the blond grinned.

"Very. Then we don't need to worry about getting up late." A tan cheek was lightly kissed, then a nonchalant remark followed: "Otouto, you'll have to hold all my calls."

"Mhmngcoffee." Sasuke's lips barely moved when he said that, and his were barely half-open.

Naruto and Itachi simply laughed before they shared yet another sensual kiss.

**(word count: 900)**

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If I were more skilled at writing actual make-out scenes, I probably would have done so... but personally, I don't think I'm all that good at that, so I hope this was sufficient. I hope I can improve in that respect someday. (I'm really considering writing another ItaNaru one to make up for this one if its quality was poor... or even if it was acceptable :p)

Coffee-lovers should never need to deal with broken coffee machines. When ours broke once, everyone except my bro (he hates coffee) was suffering - and none of us likes instant coffee, so we were screwed.

I'd be happy to know what you thought of this. See you next time, and take care! :)


	20. Prompt 18: Rainbow

It's chapter 20! One fifth of the way completed! W00t! This is one of the best challenges I've ever taken on (aside from a monstrous Kakuro which is really making me go nuts...)!

_(squeals)_ I'm so happy! I'm attending a basic first aid course, and one of the other girls likes shounen-ai and yaoi too! She had overheard me talking with my brother and my best friend about my "gay fics" (quote from my bro), and then I ended up only talking with her! XD It's the first time I've really met someone (you know, not via the internet) who shares that interest as well... you should have seen the faces my bro made. It was such a scream! :D

I'll shut up now before the author's note ends up being longer than the chapter itself, so I hope you'll enjoy it!

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**Prompt #18: Rainbow**

Sasuke cocked his head, narrowing his eyes as he studied the picture. He looked at the paper from different angles, sometimes wrinkling his nose.

"Not good enough," he said as he put the paper down again and grabbed a crayon to add more yellow to the picture. After doing the same thing with a couple of other colors, he finished it off with a rather excessive use of the black crayon before studying his picture with another scrutinizing look.

Finally, the scrutiny was replaced with a satisfied smile. "There! Done!" Looking as if he had just drawn the most beautiful artwork ever, Sasuke put the paper down and looked out the window. Just two seconds later, his eyes widened, and with a whoop, he dashed out of the living room and nearly crashed into the door in his eagerness to get outside.

"Sasuke-kun?" Mikoto inquired as she stuck her head out of the kitchen upon hearing the clatter. But her younger son was already far out of earshot.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

After saying goodbye to his teammates, Itachi left the building in which they had spent the day doing some tidying up, looking up at the sky as he did so. The rainfall had almost stopped, and the sun had crept forth from behind the dark clouds. A rainbow's end seemed to be located in the center of the village. Not giving it much thought just then, Itachi headed home.

When he reached the spot where the rainbow's end would have touched the ground, he saw a little boy standing in the middle of the street, looking around confusedly. Mud was splattered over his clothes.

"Otouto, what are you doing here?" Itachi asked, stopping.

Noticing his brother, Sasuke ran up to him. "Hi, aniki! I was looking for the pot of gold!"

"Gold?"

"Yeah! Haha said that's what I'd find at the end of the rainbow! But I guess someone stole it before I got here," he explained with a disappointed sigh.

"Aha. And what about the mud on your front?" Itachi wondered, looking him over.

"I fell down on the way."

"You're always chasing rainbows…" Itachi chuckled.

"Next time, **I'll** get the gold first!" Sasuke declared determinedly.

"Not before cleaning yourself up first, you won't. Come, otouto," Itachi spoke, and after Sasuke grabbed his hand, they walked home, where Itachi would find a picture of him and Sasuke standing underneath a rainbow.

**(word count: 400)**

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Please tell me what you think - that would definitely be something I can look forward to upon coming home after a whole day of first aid practice! :)


	21. Prompt 45: Illusion

Hey everyone, I'm back! I had actually planned to update yesterday, but I was so bushed after that first aid course... CPR is quite exhausting. I conked out soon after getting home, and when I woke up, I was too tired to post a new chapter, so I hope you'll forgive me. (But now I've got proof that I attended the course, though I would recommend relying on my brother instead of me when it comes to CPR! _(lol)_)

I'm actually looking forward to this week (behold this miracle!): shopping for clothes, shopping for... stuff (in a new manga shop the girl I mentioned in the last chapter recommended to me, yay!)... and I have to go to the dentist's tomorrow! XD Just a check-up, but I'm not worried - I haven't had a hole in my teeth in my life so far, even though I do love sweet stuff! _(victory pose) _

Ah, but now, without further delay, I present to you: chapter 21! Enjoy!

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**Prompt #45: Illusion**

When Kakashi had made an exception and given them the afternoon off for some so-called "bonding time", Sasuke had simply let Naruto lead the way; after all, he was fairly sure that the whole project was pointless. The bright side was that it was just the two of them – which meant there was no Sakura around to pester him for a date. What she would be doing with Kakashi didn't concern him at all, and he believed to be facing a leisurely afternoon as he and Naruto walked off in the opposite direction of the other two.

Instead of going to Ichiraku Ramen as many would have guessed him to do, Naruto led him to a lake. Upon getting asked why, the blond shrugged and said brightly:

"It's warm today, so I figured if we'd want to go for a swim or something…"

They had only just sat down when Naruto discovered something that made him temporarily forget his original reason for coming here:

"Hey teme, look! We could go fishing! I see lots of fish!"

"Hn," Sasuke grunted.

"What's the matter with you? Don't you wanna look at them? I bet they're playing with each other…!"

This time, Sasuke didn't even bother to respond as he stayed put, crossing his arms and rolling his eyes when he saw Naruto wave at the fish. _'What a dobe…'_

"C'mon, Sasuke, we're supposed to be bonding!"

"Bonding? Don't make me laugh."

"But Kakashi-sensei said so! Now c'mere, you're acting like you're afraid of the water or something!"

"Tough luck; I don't want to."

"So you **are** afraid of it?"

"No."

"I don't feel you," Naruto remarked, shaking his head before grinning at his reflection in the water.

"That's why," the Uchiha suddenly said – and made a face. He hadn't intended to let that slip out!

"What?"

'_Kami; for once, just be as stupid as you usually are… __Drop it…!'_

But apparently God had other plans, for Naruto suddenly laughed. "You mean you're afraid of your reflection?"

"Tsk! As if…" Sasuke snorted.

All his hopes that his teammate would let it be were crushed when the other retorted: "I'm pretty sure you are. You don't look so defiant when you have nothing to deny."

Sasuke just looked away, even though his conscience reprimanded him that that wasn't a smartest move to make if he didn't want to talk about it. Then again, maybe that was exactly what he wanted to do, even if he didn't admit it.

"Wanna talk about it?" his fellow ninja offered as he crawled over to Sasuke and sat down beside him.

Sasuke remained silent as he regarded the water. Perhaps something in his eyes had given him away, for Naruto added:

"Remember; we're supposed to be bonding."

Again, Sasuke didn't say anything, and just when Naruto thought he had zoned out completely, the dark-haired boy mumbled: "I hate my reflection."

Naruto raised an eyebrow. "Why? What's wrong with it?"

"It never lingers."

"…Huh?" This had to be serious, Naruto concluded when he noticed how Sasuke's nails dug into his upper arm as the look on his face darkened. A flurry of emotions made the black eyes glitter – bitterness, hatred, rage… and possibly a wisp of pain…

"Sasuke…" Hoping he wasn't making a mistake, Naruto put a hand on his shoulder in a gesture of sympathy.

"I look at myself… and then… it changes." Without being able to stop them, the words escaped his lips in time with his thoughts. "And before I can look away, I'm staring at **him**. It's his face in the mirror or in the water. He's looking right at me… I reach out to break it… to strangle him… to kill him… but I can never reach him…!" By now, Sasuke was staring at the ground with eyes that were blazing with loathing and almost crazed desperation.

"That's because it's just an illusion!" Naruto said. He wished that Sasuke would snap out of it – the other's expression was starting to freak him out. "Listen, if you would just calm down when you look at yourself… I bet you wouldn't see Itachi then."

When that name was spoken, Sasuke twitched, and his lips twisted into a vicious snarl. He felt just as angry as he had when he had fully realized that all the clan had really been killed and his last encounter with Itachi in the dark, eerie streets hadn't been a bad dream. As angry as he had been upon seeing his reflection transform for the first time, which had caused him to jump into the lake in an attempt to destroy it. Amidst those dark thoughts, he heard a voice repeating his name; recognizing it, he looked up and spat:

"What, dobe?!"

Worry was written in capital letters all over Naruto's face. "Please, Sasuke… don't let yourself get consumed by that… that hatred… We can go somewhere else if you want…"

"It's just… hard to deal with. I don't mean to worry you, Naruto," Sasuke replied with a headshake.

"I bet it is, but remember that I'm here for you in case you'd want somebody around," the blond told him with a small smile.

Slowly, Sasuke relaxed, and as they remained where they were, he thought that perhaps the whole "bonding" thing wasn't pointless, after all. That he put a hand on Naruto's shoulder as well was the final proof he needed.

**(word count: 900)**

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So, what do you think? This didn't turn out quite the way I wanted it to, but meh, I guess it's... okay. But maybe you think differently.

Please review, and I hope you'll have a nice week! :)


	22. Prompt 64: Dream

Chapter 22... I don't want to say too much about it beforehand, but for now, I do want to say this: perhaps - just perhaps - you should imagine a question mark in brackets behind the prompt's name... ;)

(It's official: 20 years without cavities! Woohoo! Yesterday definitely was a good day!)

Oh, and BTW: if you didn't review the last chapter... perhaps you could do that anyway? _(puppy-eyes)_ That would mean a lot to me...!

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**Prompt #64: Dream**

Exhaling with a soft moan, Sasuke opened his eyes blearily. Where was he? What had happened? Everything above him was blurred, so he blinked a few times. Finally, his vision became clear again, and he found himself staring at the treetops overhead. Looking first to his left, then to his right, he saw that he was lying spread-eagled on the forest floor.

He was aching all over. Every muscle seemed to be sore, and he felt that even more with every movement he made. Groaning, he closed his eyes again, waiting for his brain to remember what had last happened. In the trees, birds chirped merrily, and leaves rustled in the faint breeze. As he lay there, waiting for his memory, Sasuke listened to the noises of the forest. It had been a while since he had last taken the time to just listen to his surroundings without trying to determine if an enemy was nearby… and even if one would happen to come along just now, he would be – much as the thought didn't appeal to him – a pushover, since he had no strength left and was left to deal with the aches. Chasing that thought away, Sasuke relaxed as much as he could and let his thoughts drift along while listening to nature, not even bothering to remember why he was lying here in the first place.

How much time passed with him doing nothing, he didn't know, but suddenly, he felt a presence approaching. As his senses shot to red alert, he tried to get up – but his body refused to obey him. It seemed to have a will of its own, and that will demanded more rest. Frustration chased most of his drowsiness away, and Sasuke grit his teeth as he struggled to get up anyhow. But it was no use. The presence was almost upon him now, and still he had barely moved. Resignedly, he let his head fall back onto the ground and prayed that it was either Kabuto or Orochimaru who was approaching. Anything but an enemy, who would have no trouble whatsoever in finishing him off…!

The footsteps had been barely audible to start with, but now Sasuke didn't hear them anymore; however, he did hear a sound like someone had knelt down just above his head. His heart was thumping like mad, and apprehension made him freeze. For a moment, nothing happened, and just when he thought the apprehension would get the better of him, a cool hand laid itself on his forehead. It was a very welcome sensation, like a cool, damp cloth one would lay on that same spot when having a fever. A second hand laid itself on his cheek, and Sasuke closed his eyes, barely suppressing a satisfied sigh.

'_This cannot be an enemy. It just can't… or maybe it's just wishful thinking. Whichever the case, it sure feels good,'_ he mused and tilted his head a bit towards the hand on his cheek.

"Sasuke," a voice spoke. It sounded deep and empty. But it sounded familiar.

'_No… it can't be…!'_ Sasuke's thoughts were racing as his eyes flew open and he tried to move his body again, straining to get a look at who was behind him. And still his will clashed with his body's needs. _'Dammit!'_

His dawning suspicion was confirmed when the stranger leaned forward – and a face replaced Sasuke's view of the treetops. Two red eyes stared down at him. A few bangs framed the pale face, which bore two lines – lines his father's face had had too. Wide-eyed, Sasuke instantly realized that he was looking at his brother, Itachi Uchiha.

As they simply regarded each other, neither one heard the sounds of nature anymore. The silence between them seemed to last forever, and Sasuke almost swore that his heart skipped a beat more than once in the meantime. After what seemed like an eternity, an invisible hand wrapped itself around his heart and squeezed it tightly, draining it of all the surprise and filling it with all-too-familiar emotions instead: the usual bitterness, hatred, pain… and that small pinch of longing.

"You…!" Sasuke was so caught up in the moment that he had no time to notice that his voice was little more than a croak. "You bastard…!"

Itachi said nothing as he looked Sasuke in the eye. Not only his eyes, but his whole face was void of any emotions. Maybe he was just that good at concealing them. He removed the hand from his brother's forehead and cupped the other cheek instead.

Sasuke glared at him, hating himself for being unable to move. "You're lucky that my body isn't obeying me, otherwise I'd have your head! How ironic, considering that I've been waiting for this moment… you won't have your way that easily with me this time!"

The only reaction to this mini-rant was that Itachi blinked. His lips still didn't move to give a retort, and Sasuke growled.

"What's the matter? Cat got your tongue, you weasel?" If looks could kill, Itachi would have been six feet under just then.

Regardless of the insult, the older Uchiha remained where he was and started to lightly caress Sasuke's left cheek.

"What are you doing?! Stop it!" Sasuke desperately tried to move and thus swat the other's hand away, but to no avail. "Shit…!" he cursed. He continued his efforts for a minute or two, but finally gave up, realizing that he would remain unsuccessful. As a defeated look dawned on his face, he noticed that Itachi was now caressing the other cheek, still not saying a word.

"Why are you doing this?" Sasuke asked, his voice heavy with sadness.

There was a brief pause, then: "You're still weak. Foolish little brother…" Itachi finally said.

Sasuke cursed himself for feeling hurt by the disappointment in the elder's voice.

"If I'm so weak, then fucking kill me already!" he spat.

Itachi shook his head, seemingly ignoring the look in his sibling's eyes that indicated how much the tender touch was tormenting yet pleasuring him. "No. I let you live for a reason. You shall not die at my hands, but **I** shall die at **yours**. You're just not strong enough yet. And you still lack hatred."

"I do hate you!" Sasuke protested.

"Not enough," Itachi corrected him, then bent down until his nose almost touched Sasuke's. The latter felt the warm breath on his skin. It gave him the shudders.

"Hate me more. Strengthen your will to kill me. Until that happens, I will remain out of your reach."

Just when Sasuke thought he couldn't stand it anymore and tightly closed his eyes, Itachi released his face and stood up. The faint rustling of leaves hinted his otherwise wordless departure…

When Sasuke opened his eyes again, he found that he could move again. He was still aching all over, but at least he could move. Sitting up in a flash, he wildly looked around, but Itachi could neither be seen nor sensed. Sasuke fitfully dragged himself back to Orochimaru's lair, where he brooded on that encounter. Try as he might, he just couldn't decide whether it had been real… or just a dream.

**(word count: 1,200)**

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Hehe... so, how was it? And **what** was it: dream... or reality?

Personally, I sometimes imagine that this was just a dream Sasuke had, but other times, I like to imagine that this really happened (as unlikely as that is - but that's me). When I was **writing** it, I did imagine that it was a dream that Sasuke had after seriously overexerting himself; Itachi's appearance could be considered a reminder for him to continue his training to become stronger. But when I was done with writing, I decided that perhaps it didn't necessarily have to be considered a dream - which would explain why one could imagine a question mark behind the title. _(shrugs)_ That's just my opinion, though.

Please review, and thanks for your time!


	23. Prompt 94: Tradition

Alright, this one is... little more than an experiment to me. I was suddenly inspired when a certain song was played, and I almost immediately started writing. I was just so amused by the mental image I had in my head - so please remember that if this appears profoundly weird to you ;)

This oneshot is pretty much AU - music from the sixties in Kishimoto's world would be rather weird, don't you agree? And even if this wasn't based on that music, it would also be labeled "non-massacre". So there.

I hope you'll like it anyway...!

(Disclaimer: I don't own the song "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me" by Mel Carter. It's pretty pointless to point that out, but it has to be done. _(shrugs)_)

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**Prompt #94: Tradition**

Dancing was a traditional part of the annual festival in Konohagakure. Music would play almost all the time anyway, but few people were averse to dance at least once, be that on their own or with a partner.

Sasuke was one of those notorious few people. It wasn't as if he didn't attend the festival, no – he would hang around his friends and play most of the games with them – but when it came to dancing, he was nowhere to be found. The first reason for this was that he was just plain annoyed when girls who had acted like best friends all day long got into catfights over who would dance with him. Sasuke had no problem to fly the coop and come up with half-decent excuses when the following day, he would get cornered and asked where he had gone off to.

But this year, things were bound to be different. This year, Sasuke Uchiha had a date. And that date had insisted that they would dance together and keep to the tradition.

What nobody knew was that the second reason Sasuke never stuck around for a dance was that he couldn't dance. He had never bothered to learn, and now he regretted that, since he wasn't keen on making a fool out of himself when his inability to dance would be revealed. To avoid that, he decided to ask for help – which resulted in a dancing lesson he would never forget.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

"Aniki, do you know how to dance?"

Itachi, who had been channel-surfing when that question was asked, turned away from the TV screen and raised an eyebrow. "Of course I do, otouto. Why do you ask?" Needless to say, he had already guessed where this was going.

"Can you teach me how?"

"Hmm… I could."

Sasuke became irritated. "You **could**?! Will you or will you not?"

"Temper, temper, Sasuke… what's up with this sudden desperation?" Itachi asked slyly, not blinking once and enjoying seeing how his brother fidgeted uncomfortably.

"Ano…"

When that unnerving, piercing stare of the elder became too much for him, Sasuke bowed his head so his bangs would cast shadows on his face – and therefore hopefully cover up the rash of pink that now adorned his cheeks.

"It's… for the festival. I'm… I'm going there with somebody, and I was told that I am expected to dance," Sasuke finally answered in a mumble.

"A date, hmm? It's about time – I was beginning to think that you are incapable of having a love life," Itachi grinned.

"Hmpf!" Sasuke scoffed and turned his head to glare at a random spot on the wall.

Now Itachi laughed and tossed the remote aside after turning off the TV. "Oh, don't fear, little brother! I'll help you!"

"Really? No tricks?" Sasuke asked, suddenly being skeptic.

"Your distrust hurts me," Itachi remarked with a false whine.

"That's what you get for treating me like you did before – I've told you over and over again that I don't like that!" Sasuke's whine sounded much more honest.

"See? This is exactly why I keep doing it again and again… If only your friends could see you now!" Itachi mused. Noticing that Sasuke got that foreboding look again, he made a dismissive gesture. "But enough of this fooling around. So, you want to learn how to dance… and since you're having a date, I suppose you'd want me to teach you a slow dance, quite appropriate for romantic situations?"

"…Yeah…" Sasuke said slowly.

"Hang on while I get some music! This will be fun…!"

Something about that cheerful look on Itachi's face made Sasuke raise an eyebrow, and it was the first time he wondered whether this idea of his had been as good as he thought it was. This new suspicion grew stronger when Itachi came back with a CD which sounded like this when it was played:

"_Hold me, hold me; never let me go until you've told me, told me…"_

Sasuke's jaw dropped. "A-Aniki! That's such an old song! What the hell?!"

"Maybe so, but it's perfect for this lesson! Now then, let's get started…" Walking over to the stunned younger Uchiha, Itachi seized his hand, then put the other hand on the youngster's upper arm and pulled him close. "Closeness like this is helpful to add to romantic atmosphere. In fact, this is a particularly good distance – hardly any, which will make it easier for you to kiss your partner, if that is what you'd want to do," Itachi told him, sounding as if he were talking about the weather while two widened black eyes regarded him as if he were an alien.

"However, the downside of this is that you don't get any opportunities to watch your steps; unless you're not keen on keeping eye contact. But since this is only practice, do watch the steps carefully, otouto. Now, take a small step… follow my lead… good…"

The one-sidedly awkward moment of standing so close to each other without moving ended when Itachi began to show Sasuke how to dance in a very simple way, swaying from side to side a bit with every step they took.

"That's right, Sasuke… be careful not to step on your partner's feet, that kinda destroys the romantic atmosphere… oh, and don't forget to put your other arm around my waist."

"What?!" Sasuke exclaimed as they began to turn around without him noticing it.

"My, my; aren't you upright today?" Itachi smirked. "I'm just teaching you as good as I can."

"I know… sorry…" Sasuke muttered and did as he was told, though he did hope that nobody would be spying on them or something. That worry partially explained the slight blush that crept onto his face.

"You're getting the hang of it. Now try without looking at the floor, otouto. Look at me," Itachi instructed.

"_But they never stood in the dark with you, love; when you take me in your arms and drive me slowly out of my mind…"_

The two brothers continued to dance together; Itachi occasionally giving Sasuke an extra tip or two and going about the whole ordeal quite normally, whereas Sasuke remained somewhat flustered at all times. He was thankful for the help, undoubtedly – and yet the whole thing felt so weird… being so close to Itachi…

They agreed to play the song again so Sasuke could test if he really knew the steps now and thus take the lead. As Mel Carter's voice filled the living room once more, Itachi even started to softly sing along, sometimes looking at Sasuke as he did so, and sometimes not. The somewhat absent look on his face suggested that half of the time, his thoughts were elsewhere. Sasuke decided that he didn't want to know where…

When the song was over, he quickly thanked his brother for the lesson, then retreated to his room at a run. Even through the walls, he still heard that slow, old tune, and for some reason, he was fairly sure that Itachi was still in the living room, dancing all by himself with a sappy smile on his face…

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

"Ne, Sasuke, how come I've never seen you dance before?" Naruto asked as he and Sasuke danced to a slow song – though thankfully not one by Mel Carter.

"Ano… I didn't know how and didn't want to make a fool of myself. But I had a lesson yesterday," Sasuke muttered, blushing when he remembered it.

"Ah. Who taught you how?"

"Itachi."

Naruto laughed quietly. "Tell ya what: for this occasion, I asked Sakura to practice with me so I wouldn't end up ruining this…"

"I wish I had asked her too. You wouldn't believe how weird it was!" Sasuke sighed.

"Oh yeah? How weird is «weird»?"

"He used a song from the sixties! The **sixties**!" Glad to finally be able to talk about it, Sasuke proceeded to tell his best friend (boyfriend by now) about the experience. "Maybe he was high and I didn't notice it," he said thoughtfully.

"High? On what?" Naruto asked, shaking his head as if he couldn't quite believe that.

Another sigh from the Uchiha. "We're talking about my brother, Naruto. God knows anything is possible with him."

For a moment, they looked at each other, then they both shrugged and sealed the end of that topic with a tender, affectionate kiss. Sasuke only drew back a little bit so his and Naruto's noses were almost touching, and whispered:

"Just in case… if they would happen to play that old song, would you forgive me if I'd hightail it out of here?"

"Hmm…" Naruto hummed as he pretended to brood on Sasuke's question, but then he grinned. "If I can come along with you, sure you can."

"Thanks. I'll never be able to listen to it and keep a straight face ever again…"

"Man, I wish I could have been a fly on the wall…" Naruto remarked ruefully as he returned the raven's embrace.

**(word count: 1,500)**

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Please please **please** review!! It would mean sooooo much to me... I really miss your feedback! _(sniff)_ I'd like to thank **Art is a bang XD**, **Cricket-The-Duck** and **SkywardShadow** for reviewing at least one of the last two chapters! Thanks, guys, I really did appreciate it! :)

See you next time (whenever that will be - hopefully not too long, though)!


	24. Prompt 69: Pink

Huzzah! Thanks so much for the feedback, guys! It sure was great to hear from my favorite peeps again! ;) I'm so grateful and happy that I decided to post another chapter very soon - so here's one I wrote today, more or less in one go! I hope you'll like it! :)

**Warning:** In my opinion, VERY fluffy. Proceed at your own risk! Oh, and I think it might look like something more at one point, but I was aiming for fluffy brotherly love. I hope you'll see what I mean, it's kinda hard for me to describe in a short and precise way... _(sweatdrop)_

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**Prompt #69: Pink**

Before the playground even came into view, Itachi could hear the overexcited squealing of a girl. He sighed and looked up at the orange skies, feeling sorry for his little brother – both of them hated it when people squealed in their ears, but meanwhile, both of them had refrained from telling those blamable people to shut up. Except in rare moments of anger they couldn't suppress anymore; then they would still snap at the offenders to shut up. Itachi wondered if Sasuke had reached that point yet.

"Sasuke-kun, it would be so much fun! There's so much we could do! What did my mother say again…? Ah yes: we could go for a walk in the moonlight! Candlelight dinner! And then –"

"I said **no**, for crying out loud! Which part of that don't you understand?!" an indignant voice exclaimed.

"But Sasuke-kun, don't you want to try it **once**?" the girl's voice whined.

"Sakura-chan, **I'll** try it with you!" another boy piped up hopefully.

"Can it, Naruto! If I wanted to go out with you, I'd ask you!"

"But, Sakura-chaaaaaaaaaaaaan…!"

"Sasuke-kun…!"

By now, Itachi had climbed the small flight of stairs that led to the playground and could lay eyes upon the three children that were still there: a blond boy, Naruto, a pink-haired girl, Sakura, and of course his dear little brother, Sasuke.

He didn't even need to say something to make his presence known; Sasuke spotted him almost immediately when he came into sight and cried joyfully:

"Nii-san! You really came!"

Without having neither first nor second thoughts about the slightly put-out look on Sakura's face because the mere appearance of Itachi had brought such happiness to his face, Sasuke ran around the slide and straight into his brother's arms.

"I told you I'd come, didn't I?" Itachi smiled, hugging Sasuke, who was nuzzling his stomach in utmost contentment.

"Ano… Sasuke-kun…" Sakura began, having sidled up to them.

Sasuke jumped and quickly slipped behind Itachi, peeking around his legs and looking at her as if she were a hideous bug. "What? Can't you leave me alone?" he muttered defiantly. His cheeks turned a little bit pink when Itachi fondly ruffled his hair, amused by this interaction.

"Sakura-chan! Time to go home!" a woman called from the bottom of the stairs.

The girl in question peered over the edge to see her mother. "Coming, kachan!" she replied and waved to Sasuke, batting her eyelashes. Sasuke cringed.

"Aw, why won't she go out with **me**, dattebayo?!" Naruto sighed exasperatedly as he slid down the slide, shuffling over to the Uchiha brothers.

"You can have her. Go ahead," Sasuke told him, making an inviting gesture.

"But she's too focused on **you**! And you treat her like dirt, dattebayo!"

"Hey, it's not **my** fault that all my rebuffs are useless because she's so stubborn!" Sasuke defended himself.

"Hang in there, Naruto. Patience is the key to success," Itachi said.

"Yeah, you're probably right…" Naruto's face brightened again. "Ne, Sasuke, wanna hang out tomorrow again, dattebayo?"

The raven shrugged. "Sure, why not?"

"Yosh, dattebayo! See you then!" Grinning broadly, Naruto waved goodbye and left the playground as well.

"Shall we go home now as well, otouto?" Itachi asked.

"Couldn't we stay a bit longer instead? I wanna spend some time with you, and at home, chichi always finds something for you to do or talk about, and –" Sasuke began to protest.

"I get the message. Alright, we'll stay a bit longer," Itachi agreed with a laugh.

Sasuke cheered and proceeded to drag his brother to the swings, where they sat down. While Sasuke actually began to swing back and forth, Itachi stayed where he was, contenting himself with simply watching the youngster.

"Looks like my little brother has an admirer," he finally remarked after a few moments of silence.

"Too bad I don't feel that way about her as well," Sasuke replied haughtily.

"Oh?"

"Yes! I just need to hear that outcry of 'Sasuke-kuuuuun!'" (he mimicked her high-pitched squeal) "and I want to turn tail and run far, far away. The same goes for when I see that blob of pink merely approach me…" He made a face. "I sure hate pink."

"Is that so?" Itachi smirked. "Well, I am rather fond of pink, myself."

This statement made Sasuke instantly dig his heels into the ground and thus put an abrupt end to his swinging. His eyes were wide with shock. "Nii-san!"

Itachi raised his hands in mock defense. "Don't get me wrong… I may like pink, but it's only a certain kind of pink. And before you ask: no, it's not the pink of that girl's hair."

"What kind of pink is it, then?" Sasuke asked, knitting his brow in ongoing bewilderment over this new fact about his brother he had learned – or was **about to** learn.

"A very unique pink. It can only be found in one place. It comes and goes…" Itachi mused.

"Tell me already, nii-san!" Sasuke urged him, bouncing up and down on his swing.

Smiling in a rather secretive way, Itachi silently invited Sasuke to come sit on his lap. Of course, the younger Uchiha accepted the invitation right away as he leapt off the swing and quickly crawled (or rather: hopped) onto Itachi's lap.

He was about to turn around and look at the elder, but instead found himself being pressed tightly and yet tenderly against the other's body when Itachi's arms wrapped themselves around his middle. And he felt how his face got slightly hot when the tip of a certain someone's nose lightly touched his skin just beneath his ear, from where it trailed down his neck all the way to the collar of his shirt.

"Nii… Nii-san…" he breathed.

Carefully, Itachi helped his brother shift on his lap until they could look at each other better. The boy's cheeks were pink and his black eyes were shining.

"There it is again… the pink that I like…" Itachi whispered, his gaze slowly wandering over Sasuke's face as if to memorize each and every detail. When it came to a halt, he was practically admiring the youngster's cheeks. "Sasu-chan, when you blush, I see the prettiest pink ever."

"Really?" Sasuke asked. To him, the moment was incredibly special – now he clearly saw how much Itachi loved him. The elder wished he could show this more often, but since Fugaku mostly kept them separated in his quite limited spare time, appropriate opportunities were scarce.

"Really," Itachi confirmed. "You are the place where I find the pink I like."

The light pink on Sasuke's cheeks became darker as he beamed; he was fighting to win proper praise from his father, but when Itachi praised him, it made him feel plenty special indeed.

As if the prodigy in question had read his thoughts, he said: "You are very special, Sasuke; don't ever let anyone tell you anything different."

With a happy nod, Sasuke snuggled up to Itachi and held on tight when his brother stood up. Itachi took a moment to smile at Sasuke's slightly flushed face with the closed eyes, then he kissed him very gently on the forehead before he finally began to go home.

**(word count: 1,200)**

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"Kachan": informal for "okasan" (mother)

Reviews are cherished and will receive a safe place in a special folder! So please write me one - you know it will get treated well! Matane!


	25. Prompt 33: Expectations

Ah, another one of my works that didn't turn out quite the way I wanted it to. _(sigh)_ Oh well, I still hope it's up to scratch.

I had actually planned to update yesterday, but the site must have been having a problem or something - the login screen just never showed up. But a "late" update is better than no update at all, right? ;)

Enjoy!

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**Prompt #33: Expectations**

He was sick of it. So fed up with it all. Why wasn't he just appreciated for who he was as an individual? He was trying so hard to live up to the expectations… but it was never good enough, and he had yet to be praised for his efforts without enduring comparison.

"Itachi's achievements were greater when he was your age, but if you try really hard, you might be able to catch up anyhow."

Sasuke was sitting in front of his father and bowed his head to hide the frustration and disappointment that showed on his face upon hearing those words, though he couldn't stop his fists from trembling a bit.

"Otosan… but I did do good… didn't I?" he asked quietly, not looking at the man. He knew what he would see: a stoic expression that lacked any hint of appreciation.

"Hn. There's still plenty of room for improvement. Remember that, Sasuke."

Having finished this short, arid discussion of Sasuke's latest training progress, Fugaku rose and left the room. Sasuke stayed where he was, head still bowed and fists still trembling. When he heard the door slide shut, he bit his lower lip and fitfully fought against the upcoming tears. He had kept quiet about his discomfort so far, but now he felt as if he couldn't take it anymore.

Wasn't it enough for his father that Itachi had already lived up to his expectations – **surpassed** them, even? Why wouldn't Fugaku see that his sons were just different, that one of them fortunately happened to be a prodigy while the other remained in the shadows, desperately striving to obtain a praise of his own for a change?

Allowing himself to show his feelings now that he was alone, Sasuke slowly got up and shuffled away, letting the tears run down his cheeks. On the way to his room, a door opened before him, and Itachi stepped out into the corridor.

"What's wrong, otouto?" he asked, not liking the downright miserable expression on the youngster's face.

"I… I… I can't do anything right!" Sasuke finally sniffed, wildly shaking his head.

"Hush, Sasuke. Calm down…" Itachi advised him, taking his hand and leading him to his bedroom. There, he sat down on the bed after Sasuke had curled up into a fetal position. "Now, what's all this about not doing anything right?" he inquired.

"Otosan… he keeps comparing me to you. I-I **try** to live up to his expectations, but all he can think about is how well you did when you were my age. Once… just **once**… I want to hear him praise me without thinking of you at the same time!"

"Someday, he will. I know it's hard for you, but remember that no matter what, he still loves you," Itachi told him, comfortingly petting Sasuke's hair.

"But those expectations… they make me think of you in a way I don't want to think of you!" Sasuke all but yelled as the tears kept coming.

"It is typical for the older sibling to be a role model for the younger one," Itachi replied, wiping away a few tears. When his brother opened his mouth to give a retort, he added: "And it's quite normal for the younger one to hold a grudge against the elder, too."

"But I don't **wanna** hold a grudge against you!" Sasuke whined and latched onto Itachi's arm.

Said older boy gave him a hug before saying in a rather heavy voice: "Maybe not **now**, but who knows what the future has in store. Someday, you might hate me."

Sasuke recoiled, shocked by that statement. "What?! Nii-san, I could never hate you…!"

Itachi merely shook his head, and when Sasuke silenced, confused, he whispered: "Never say never, otouto. Now please calm down and try not to think too much about this whole expectations thing, okay? I'll come back and get you when dinner is ready."

"Okay," Sasuke mumbled, curling up again.

His confusion didn't ebb away when Itachi smiled as if he hadn't just made such a ridiculous prediction about their relationship and briefly caressed his cheek before leaving the room. And calming down was out of the question for Sasuke that evening.

**(word count: 700)**

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So, how was it? Was I too self-critical, or was that justified? (You don't need to answer that question, of course - that's just me rambling a bit...)

Please tell me what you think! :)

(Now I've completed one quarter of the way! _(throws confetti)_ Thanks to all of you who have supported me so far!!)


	26. Prompt 51: Sport

Ah, this one definitely is a bad attempt at humor! XD It's actually based on a joke in a cat calender we once had... I'll tell it in the end so I won't give it away already (though I think you will have gotten it by the time you've finished reading)... But what I can say now is that the main expression of the joke is mainly used for animals, and not for humans. I had to ask dad to make sure I could use it in reference to humans without screwing it up badly. I hope I managed that.

But enough of me, now; on with the story! Consider this AU, BTW!

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**Prompt #51: Sport**

"Hey, there he is!"

"Wait, what's that? A mini-version of himself?"

"Something tells me that it's worse than that…"

"Yo, Itachi, what kept you so long?"

A disgruntled-looking Itachi joined the group of waiting teens on an open meadow just outside the city. Next to him, a little boy with the same black hair and black eyes waved cheerfully at the gang.

"Um… dude… we weren't expecting company," Kisame remarked, pointing to the youngster.

"Call it a persistent younger brother – I made a huge detour, trying to shake him off, but he stuck to me like superglue!" Itachi complained.

"But dad said I should go play ball with you!" Sasuke reminded him.

"We're stuck with a fucking kid?! Seriously, you can't be serious!" Hidan groaned.

"Look, I don't like it either, but we have to, or else…" Itachi began, deliberately letting Sasuke finish the sentence:

"I'll tell dad that you ditched me!"

"See?"

"Crap…"

"Whoa, do you guys know what this means, yeah?!" Deidara exclaimed. "We'd actually have the same number of people on both teams!"

Sasori face-palmed. "For Picasso's sake… can't you count, moron?! We're eleven people! Eleven! Not ten and not twelve; **eleven**!"

"Huh?" Looking slightly confused, Deidara silently counted them up – twice, just to be sure – then casually corrected himself: "Oh yeah, eleven. I knew that, yeah."

Sasori immediately pretended not to know the blond next to him.

Noticing this behavior, Deidara desperately tried to regain the redhead's attention: "Hey, it was just a simple miscount, yeah! Please don't treat me like air…!"

"Things should be fair, though… Tell you boys what: I'll sit out this time, then there will still be five people on each team," Konan suggested.

"Aw, come on, Konan…!"

"You can't be serious!"

"Don't you know what that **means**?!"

"That would mean that one team is predestined to lose!"

"Tobi is a good boy!"

Pein booted Tobi out of their ranks – their overly eager friend landed close to Sasuke, who merely blinked at that seemingly random statement.

"Enough!" Konan snapped. "Look, we all know that when a kid threatens to snitch, it's not an empty threat. Hell; when **you guys** threaten to snitch, it isn't an empty threat either! And your dad would get pissed off if he'd find out that Sasuke got ditched, right, Itachi?" she asked, addressing the Uchiha.

"The doormat might as well say «Welcome to Hell» instead of just «Welcome»," he confirmed, but added in a whisper to Kisame: "That doesn't mean that I'm well-behaved all the time, but… I just got grounded two weeks ago, and I don't wanna push my luck this time."

Kisame nodded in agreement.

"And didn't you say you wanted me to be your own private cheerleader sometime?" Konan asked Pein in a very sweet voice indeed.

The teen in question blushed scarlet.

"How about it?" she purred, playing a bit with one of his many earrings.

Pein cleared his throat, then announced a bit louder than necessary: "Okay, you heard it, guys – we'll do it just like she said!"

Again, a tirade of protest met this declaration: complaints about why Konan always got what she wanted, why he had doomed half of them to be losers, yadda yadda yadda. They only shut up when Pein finally snapped and yelled at them with a mouth that seemed to be ten times its usual size.

The peace only lasted for a few seconds before the next big question was raised: which team would get Sasuke?

"Itachi, he's on your team!"

"What?! Come on, don't blame it all on the blood, guys!"

"We're gonna lose for sure! He's just a squirt!"

"Hey! I'm already eight!" Sasuke interjected testily, but was ignored, of course.

"Let's see what he's got before we make a decision," Kakuzu finally suggested, looking at Sasuke as if he were a sheep that a shepherd named Kakuzu might consider buying at an animal market.

"Yeah… Itachi, throw a few pitches to your bro," Zetsu agreed.

"Fine…" Itachi grumbled and thrust the bat Kisame had brought along into Sasuke's hands before walking off to a suitable pitching distance. "Keep your eyes on the ball, little brother," he instructed him, taking a stance.

"How hard should I swing?" Sasuke asked, raising the bat.

"As hard as you can; I don't care. Just swing," Itachi answered firmly. "Alright: ready? Here it comes!" And he pitched as the others watched attentively. All of them bet that Sasuke's performance would be laughable.

Indeed, that it was; just not in the sense they had expected. Sasuke did just as he had been told and swung as hard as he could.

_Whap!_

The ball whizzed right back at Itachi – but to the teen's misfortune, it wasn't a high-flying ball at all. In short: Itachi **did** catch the ball, but with a much more sensitive part of him than with his hand (which would have been protected by the glove). His hands flew to his crotch as he groaned in agony, then he keeled over on the spot.

"Ooh…" His friends winced in unison.

"Kid, you fixed him like a freakin' dog, yeah," Deidara said, making a face as he imagined the pain Itachi had to be in.

With a puzzled expression, Sasuke lowered the bat. "Fixed him? I didn't know he was broken."

It was remarkable how quickly the group's attitude changed due to that reply: they burst out laughing. Some slapped their knees, and others had to lean on someone else's shoulder for support.

"What? Did I say something stupid?" Sasuke inquired, now even more confused than before.

"The kid's on our team, yeah!" Deidara wheezed, clapping Sasori's shoulder.

"No way; he's on **our** team!" Kisame argued.

"Hell no! We're one man – girl, sorry – short!"

"We'll trade! We get Sasuke, you guys get Tobi!"

"Trade, my ass!"

"Okay, you whiners, how about this: you get Kakuzu instead, and we get Sasuke!"

"Fuck that! Moneybags stays with me, retards!"

Once again, the mood changed as they all got engaged in a flat-out brawl, complete with punching, kicking, biting and hair-pulling. Konan managed to sidestep the jumble of limbs and shook her head, muttering:

"Boys…"

"Do they always fight like this?" Sasuke asked.

"Only over petty little things. The real thing is something else entirely," she told him, wondering if she would ever get around to being Pein's cheerleader for a change.

From where he still lay on his side in the grass, Itachi finally yelled: "Excuse me, but I'm in pain over here! A little help or sympathy, anyone?!"

Sadly, the noises of the fight drowned out his voice entirely…

**(word count: 1,100)**

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_(shrugs)_ I think I've done better when it comes to humor, but I found it funny. Anyway; this is the joke I was talking about:

Dad: _(is about to take the cat to the vet)_

Son: "You're getting him fixed? I didn't know he was broken."

Lol, I really liked that joke! :D

Gomen nasai, Itachi...! I just couldn't resist! It was just for fun ;)

Please review and share your opinion with me!


	27. Prompt 63: Do Not Disturb

Aah, this one will be... interesting, to put it mildly. I really wonder what you guys will think of this... _(narrows eyes)_

Alright, some of you already know that I'm not that much into the graphic stuff - hints are okay, but I just can't read explicit things. That's just the way it is. Which is also why it's not easy for me to "go graphic". I at least try to hint it every now and then, and this is what this one is all about. So beware and don't cherish too great expectations! ;)

**Warning:** Um... I dunno if this can already be called yaoi (I don't wanna make false claims)... but let's just say that it is hinted. Pairing in question: SasuNaru.

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**Prompt #63: Do Not Disturb**

'_Keep on walking… almost there…!'_

"Sasuke! Hey, we need your help… the lights are going out again…"

Instead of letting his shoulders sag in exasperation, Sasuke growled and turned around. "Stop bothering me with the goddamn lights, Kiba! I'm **not** a human firelighter! There's a reason why matches were invented, you know?!"

"Testy fellow tonight, aren't you?"

"Whatever. Now if you don't mind, I have to go somewhere…"

"Wait; you're leaving?! But this party is cool… and I thought you were enjoying it!"

"I'm not exactly leaving. But that's none of your business, so there," Sasuke told him firmly, then whirled around and headed for the stairs. Silently, he dared anyone to follow him – the unfortunate stalker would end up getting toasted by his fireball jutsu. And he wasn't talking about crisp, golden toast: no, he was talking about a pile of ashes!

Upstairs, it was a bit quieter. Not minding this at all, Sasuke walked down the corridor, peeking into each of the four rooms on the way. In the last one, he found what he was looking for.

"There you are, dobe," he said as he entered the room, not quite closing the door behind him.

"What are you doing here, teme?" Naruto sighed, rubbing his forehead.

"I came to check on you. Feeling better?" Sasuke asked, walking to the bed to get a better look at the blond ninja.

"So-so. Stupid headache…" Naruto grumbled. He had been sick not too long ago, but he had insisted on coming to the party anyway. However, being exposed to loud music all the time had quickly resulted in a nasty headache.

"Guess you won't be coming down anytime soon," Sasuke remarked.

"Nah. I hate missing out on the action, though…"

"Who needs the others? We can have some action of our own."

"You mean a pillow fight?" Naruto asked, watching the raven as he went to the dresser next to the door, got something out of it and briefly fiddled with it, then opened and closed the door a moment later.

"Not exactly. But you got the location right," Sasuke smirked as he walked back to the bed.

Naruto eyed him suspiciously, but suddenly he grinned. "Are you thinking what I think you're thinking?"

"I think so. I went easy on you when you were sick, but I do hope your headache isn't **that** bad."

Deciding that with any luck, he would get distracted from the nauseating affliction, Naruto shook his head and lay down on the bed, where Sasuke pinned him down right away. "I'm sure I'll survive. But what if someone comes in?"

"Then they're toast," Sasuke answered matter-of-factly before bowing his head and claiming Naruto's lips in a soft, tender kiss. Then, following the way they liked it the most, he shortened the pauses to catch their breaths more and more as he deepened the kisses. He felt two hands put themselves onto his shoulder blades and apply pressure, as if to keep him in place. At the same time, it intensified their body contact, and Naruto shifted a bit as his body arched into Sasuke's loving touches, grinding their hips together in the process.

This elicited a sensual moan from both of them and was the cue for the next stage: Sasuke's lips left Naruto's as they set out on an exploration tour of the other's face, kissing the tip of the nose twice during that. Then Sasuke moved on to Naruto's neck, the sensitive spot of the other ninja. Promptly, an almost desperate-sounding, passionate moan greeted the first searing kiss that was planted upon the skin.

"Oh God… Sasuke…!"

Grinning to himself, the dark-haired teen carefully bit down on the next spot, slowly and pleasurably sucking. Perhaps now even those who were blind to his increasingly noticeable affection for Naruto would notice that they were an item.

"Ngh… oh… ah…" Naruto was getting out of breath. It simply never failed, and he could clearly picture the satisfied smirk on Sasuke's face that mirrored how much it pleased the other to hear him pant and moan, being at the complete mercy of seductive touches.

"Naruto…" Sasuke slipped a hand under the shorter one's shirt, teasingly caressing the tan chest that heaved with the blond's increasingly stressed breathing. "I hope you're enjoying this, regardless of your headache…" A kiss was placed upon the skin right next to his restlessly groping, fondling hands.

Meanwhile, one of Naruto's hands had finally managed to overcome the obstacle of Sasuke's shirt and was now softly scratching and rubbing the skin beneath it. The other hand was playing with the Uchiha's hair where it stood up in the back.

"Sasuke… just don't stop… please…" Naruto gasped when the kisses from those hot lips had reached his stomach while a hand began to fiddle with the waistband.

"It would be my pleasure," Sasuke answered and briefly reached up again to kiss Naruto's lips, as if having heard their silent begging. Then he went right back to work…

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

"Kiiiiiiiiiiiba, do you know where Sasuke is?" Sakura asked sweetly, leaning forward and batting her eyelashes.

"Upstairs; why? …Oh wait, stupid question, huh?" Kiba replied, but Sakura had already turned around and headed for the stairs, giggling in giddy anticipation.

"Ooh; tonight must be my lucky night…!" Her voice trailed off as she temporarily drifted away to the very big corner of her mind that was labeled «Sasuke, the dream of my sleepless nights».

Reality kicked in again when someone brushed past her, almost knocking her off-balance. Snapping out of her daydream, Sakura glared at her most dangerous rival (at least; that's what **she** thought).

"Watch where you're going, Ino-pig!"

"Well, excuse **me**, forehead girl, but since **you** appear to content yourself with the mere dream, **I'm** going for the real thing!" Ino retorted and stuck out her tongue.

"You, getting Sasuke before me?! Ha! I'm on the same team as him, after all, so I can be around him a lot more than you! And I'm pretty sure he smiled at me yesterday!"

"In your dreams! Now get lost; I've got an A-rank mission to complete… OW!" Ino yelped when she felt a sharp tug at her blonde hair.

"Like hell you will!" Sakura snapped and dashed to the top of the stairs. Ino followed quickly, both of them bombarding one another with hideous insults. As they stormed down the hallway, somehow finding the time to peek in the rooms along the way, they made a ruckus like a herd of elephants.

Finally, they reached the only door that was really closed. A simple sign hung on the handle, a sign that read: «Do not disturb!» The girls were too caught up in their rampage to notice it and practically knocked the door down, tripping over the threshold and making a pancake landing on the floor. When they looked up, their jaws dropped.

For a few seconds, they saw a shirtless Sasuke on top of Naruto, undoubtedly just about ready to get it on. Then, in a flash, the Uchiha's face darkened, and the last thing the girls remembered about that night was a four-word cry, followed by a scalding heat.

"_Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu!"_

**(word count: 1,200)**

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So... how was it? Are your eyes bleeding? _(lol)_ Jk, I hope. Anyway; even it was acceptable, please don't expect this often of me. I manage stuff like this once in a blue moon :D (and because of that, I'm actually a teensy bit proud of the... er, make-out scene... thing...)

Looking forward to your reviews and hoping you're all doing fine! Adios for now! :)


	28. Prompt 99: Space

I may not be feeling all that well - physically speaking, that is - but psychically, it's the opposite. This'll be a good week; my uncle from America is gonna visit us, and I can't wait for that! In addition to that, I finally decided to check out this song that was mentioned in multiple fanfics that I read: Aerosmith's "Dude Looks Like A Lady" Man, somehow I can't stop smiling when I hear it... :D Anyway, that's another reason why I'm uber-happy right now, and because of that, I've decided to post a new chapter today instead of tomorrow! It's prompt #99! (Hehe, you'll have to wait a while before I post prompt #100! 8D)

Ooookay... this one is definitely AU... it is Kishimoto's world, but I've twisted a few facts. Why? Because I can. It's fiction, after all. **Twisted fact in this prompt:** Itachi didn't suffer from this mysterious disease we've learned about. Today, I read about a theory that Madara poisoned him, so that's my temporary explanation for him coughing up blood and stuff during his final fight with Sasuke.

This prompt takes place a couple of years after the fight - exactly how many, I'll tell you in the second part. This is a twoshot, and the basic idea is from **Art is a bang XD** - I hope you like it (so far)!

_(shuts up before the A/N gets ridiculously long)_

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**Prompt #99: Space**

"…Sasuke?" Naruto asked hesitantly, sticking his head into the living room, where the Uchiha in question was staring out of the window, apparently admiring their backyard while in reality, his thoughts were a million miles away. But they weren't too far away for him to take notice of the blond's voice.

"What?" he asked curtly, not turning around.

"We've got a visitor who wants to see you."

An annoyed sigh. "Who?"

Naruto didn't reply and stepped aside, making room for their guest. Meanwhile, Sasuke wondered why he had to wait so long for an answer. He could hear someone walk across the room; that Naruto had to come closer to give an answer didn't make sense–

"Long time no see… otouto."

Sasuke stiffened and his eyes widened at the sound of that voice. He hadn't heard it in such a long time… and although it had slowly begun to fade, he recognized it very quickly. If someone had asked him, he would have been unable to tell them what he felt in that moment of realization. All he knew was that moving suddenly seemed such a hard thing to do.

"Sasuke! Are you okay?" Naruto asked, suddenly appearing next to him and extending a hand.

With a slightly disbelieving, but otherwise blank expression, Sasuke looked up, and just as Naruto knitted his brows in worry, the other man took the offered hand and with it the aid to stand up. In what seemed like slow-motion, he turned around and found himself staring at a face he had once used to need to look up to.

His mouth opened, but his first attempt to speak failed. Sasuke blinked, then tried again and finally uttered a name:

"…Itachi?"

The older Uchiha cocked his head and raised an eyebrow. "Yes, it's me. Unless I have a twin brother, which would be quite new to me…"

Instantly, Sasuke's gaze hardened, and he abruptly turned away. Naruto looked from one brother to the other, clearly unsure what he should/could say, if anything. Itachi gave a small sigh.

"I'm sorry, Sasuke. I didn't mean to offend you."

Sasuke only balled his hands to fists and swallowed audibly.

"Um… Itachi… do you want a cup of tea?" Naruto inquired, feeling uneasier by the second.

"That would be nice, Naruto, thank you," Itachi answered, and with a nod, the blond left the living room, hoping that everything would be alright while knowing that his presence was most likely not needed right now…

In the living room, a silence that seemed awfully loud had fallen. Itachi reckoned that they could just as well have been standing on opposite sides of a yawning chasm. When they had been younger, Sasuke would have been the one to break the silence – but it now it was Itachi who chose to do so:

"Sasuke, are you even willing to talk to me? Or is my timing bad?"

"Timing?" A whisper. "**Timing**?!" A shout, and Sasuke whirled around, a bewildered and almost anguished look on his face. "How can you speak of **timing**?! I thought you had **died**, for crying out loud!"

If Itachi was taken aback by the outburst, he didn't show it. Calmly, he looked Sasuke straight in the eye, taking notice of every emotion he could make out. There was no more hatred in the other's eyes, contrarily to how it had been when they had last met. But there was sadness, regret and disbelief. He would have to handle this situation with as much as care as possible – Sasuke wouldn't be comforted as easily as when he had been a kid, though Itachi briefly wished that would be the case.

"To be honest, I thought I would die when we last met. You were strong, little brother, so strong…"

"How?" Sasuke asked, fighting to keep his voice steady. "You… you had already said goodbye and everything… you told me to leave, that I could do nothing for you even if I wanted to…"

"We weren't alone. One of my colleagues was watching from a distance, and after you left, he took me back to the hideout, where I eventually recovered," Itachi answered.

Taking a shuddering breath, Sasuke turned away again, as if he couldn't bear to look at his brother, whom he had presumed dead. Yet in the window, he could see the reflection of the other standing further behind him. The existence of that reflection erased any slight suspicions Sasuke had that he was hallucinating… again…

"I've missed you, Sasuke. I really have," Itachi said softly.

The words made his heart ache, but Sasuke still failed to fully grasp the reality of the situation, which was why he tried to suppress that feeling. After spending so many years feeding off the hatred for his brother and abandoning exactly that hatred after he had been told that Itachi's intentions for him had been of a good nature… how could he be expected to accept this sudden confrontation with ease? That would make it seem as if he had already put a significant part of his past behind him!

With as much hesitation as ever, he looked over his shoulder at Itachi. "Missed me." It was a statement, not a question. Spoken in an incredulous tone of voice.

"You heard me, and you know I speak the truth," Itachi told him somberly.

"If you really missed me as much as you claim you did, then why did it take you so long to come looking for me? Surely you concluded that I wasn't exactly overjoyed during what I believed to be your last moments," Sasuke retorted, narrowing his eyes.

"Well…" Itachi began.

"Sorry if I'm interrupting, but… I've brought the tea," Naruto piped up as he entered the living room again.

The two Uchihas stared first at him, then at each other. Before the momentarily occurred silence could become awkward, Sasuke pointed at the low table.

"Itachi… why don't you have… a seat. And please excuse me…"

As soon as he finished speaking, he headed for the door, steering clear of his brother, not looking at him.

"Sasuke…?"

Naruto's voice stopped him when he was right at the blond's side. Sasuke knew what question would have followed his name, and because Naruto knew that he knew that, the other had refrained from asking the question at all.

"I'm alright. I just need a moment… for myself," he whispered, gently putting a hand on Naruto's shoulder. The other ninja merely nodded, then Sasuke left the room for good. Those who remained in it stared after him until he had rounded the corner and was out of sight, then Naruto turned to Itachi, trying to lighten up the mood with a smile.

"He'll be back shortly. You like green tea, right?"

"Oh yes, very much. It makes me think of dango when I happen to not have one on me," Itachi answered with a small smile as he ambled over to the low table, clearly taking great care of where he was going. Naruto didn't fail to notice this.

"You want some?"

A sound that one wasn't used to hearing from Itachi sounded out at that question: a hearty laugh. "No, don't bother; I came here to visit my little brother and not to have you bustling around like a servant just because I mentioned something I like!"

"Hey, I'd have no problem with getting you some," Naruto insisted, grinning. Hearing Itachi laugh made him feel as if they had already been friends for a while. He wondered how Sasuke would have reacted to this.

Itachi waved the offer aside. "Really, it's okay. Please sit down as well, or you'll end up embarrassing me."

Shrugging, Naruto sat down as well, and both of them sipped their tea.

"I hope you don't mind me asking, but… I had actually expected to find Sasuke alone. Are you living together?" Itachi asked, genuinely interested.

"Well, **actually**…" Naruto smiled sheepishly and scratched the back of his head.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

Sasuke sat down heavily on the edge of the large bed and held his head, digging his fingers into his hair. He just couldn't quite believe it. His brother, whom he had believed to be dead, was in the living room! He didn't look too much different from the last time they had met… except that the hair was a bit longer and such… He had appeared out of nowhere, like a ghost. Sasuke remembered their last meeting… years ago… he thought it had been goodbye forever. Hell; he had even mourned Itachi's **death**, especially after learning about the true nature of his intentions! And now… all that had been deemed… pointless? Sasuke winced – how was he supposed to deal with this? Could he be able to talk to Itachi like he was probably expected to? What hurt the most was the sudden, stronger-getting clash between his more recent past and the distant part of him… the young, innocent Sasuke, who cried out happily now that his nii-san had returned…

**(word count: 1,500)**

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TBC! Hope this deserves to be continued, of course... ;) (Hint: there will be more twisted facts in the next part - but not many, don't worry!)

Please tell me what you think! _(crosses fingers)_


	29. Prompt 40: Fear

And... ...we've returned to fluff! I guess I wrote this because recently, our weather has been quite similar: when you look outside, the sun is shining or at least it's just a bit cloudy, and the next time you look outside, it's raining like hell! I don't mind, however - we've been having a couple of thunderstorms! :) Looks like Saint Pete is doing his job properly for a change ;) (I just like bad weather...)

My uncle from America will arrive tomorrow, so I don't know how much time I will be able to spend writing - or rather, gathering ideas. But I'll try to get back to this as much as possible with only one more week of vacation left.

So, now that all that has been said, enjoy the new chapter!

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**Prompt #40: Fear**

"Sasu-chan, we should get going! Bad weather is approaching," Itachi said, looking up at the skies above. The day had started out fairly sunny, and that was how it should have stayed according to the forecast, which was why the two brothers had decided to go for a long walk. Now it was late in the afternoon, and dark clouds had appeared on the horizon. **Fast-moving** dark clouds.

Sasuke was in a field and chasing a pair of butterflies. As usual when he was totally wrapped up in an activity, he was far from paying attention to something as trivial as the weather, and so it was with a small, adorable pout that he temporarily gave up the pursuit to turn to his older brother.

"Nii-san?"

"You heard me. Come now, otouto." Itachi saw a flash of light in the distance and added: "A storm will most likely soon be upon us, and I know you're afraid of storms."

Sasuke threw back his head, and his eyes widened when he saw the darkness above them, confirming that his aniki had spoken the truth. Immediately forgetting the butterflies, he ran back to the dirt path, grabbing Itachi's hand as soon as he got there. The elder smiled warmly and gently patted him on the head before he continued to walk back to their village.

Just five minutes later, lightning flashed again, this time noticeably closer. Since he didn't need to look at the sky to have seen the light, Sasuke whimpered and tried to get even closer to Itachi while they kept on walking.

"Nii-san, I thought haha said that it would be **sunny** today…"

"That's what the forecast predicted, yes, but sometimes nature proves them wrong, and that can happen very quickly," Itachi told him. The thunder had yet to be heard, but it could only be a matter of time. Itachi knew that they wouldn't make it back before–

_Drip. Drip. Drip._

The rain began to fall before he even finished that thought. Great. It wasn't as if **he** minded getting caught in a storm – in fact, he liked them – but Sasuke sure did. Plus, the little one had never before been outside during one, and this would be ten times worse for him than when he was in the house…

A bolt of lightning struck, and the thunderclap that almost instantly followed made Sasuke blanch with fear, and with a louder whimper than before, he tried to bury his face in Itachi's trouser leg.

"Nii-san, I'm afraid…!"

"I know, otouto, but we mustn't linger here. We should at least seek refuge in the woods. I'll even carry you, if you want." He made this offer because he knew that when Sasuke was scared like this, he tended to freeze, too afraid to move. The proposal elicited a nod from the younger Uchiha, and so Itachi got ready to give him a piggy-back. Sasuke protested:

"But nii-san, what if I get hit by lightning? You wouldn't notice if I'm on your back where you can't see me!"

"I'd notice that anyway, Sasu-chan, but if it makes you feel better…" Itachi sighed, then picked his brother up bridal style and carried him to the woods. The rain beat down harder, and every time thunder sounded out anew, Sasuke tightened his grip on Itachi, nuzzling his neck while closing his eyes tightly.

As Itachi carried him home, he couldn't help but smile – he didn't necessarily like seeing the other being so afraid, but he thoroughly enjoyed the moments in which he was Sasuke's sanctuary and could hold him tightly like this…

**(word count: 800)**

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Please review, peeps! Oh, and if you have a request, do tell me! It would be my pleasure to try and grant your wishes! :)


	30. Prompt 48: Childhood

_(sigh)_ Just one more week of vacation... oh well; perhaps mom is right, and it will do me good not to have so much spare time anymore. I'll miss writing during the day, though. I can type up a few more prompts during this last week so I'd have reserves - just in case...

I admit that this was purely inspired from a verse in a German song. It goes like this:

_"Ich brauchte nur abends nach Hause zu rennen - mit zerrissenen Hosen und aufgeschlagenen Knien; die Mutter hat geschimpft, und dann hat sie's verziehen. Für mein Knie und für alle Wehwehchen hat's eben bei ihr immer die richtige Salbe gegeben. War ich wirklich mal traurig und mir kamen die Tränen; als Kind darf man weinen und braucht sich nicht zu schämen."_

Translation:

_"In the evening, I just needed to run home with ripped pants and sore knees; Mother would tell me off, but then she'd forgive it. For my knee and all those little ailments she would have the proper ointment. When I was really sad and tears came to my eyes... as a child, you're allowed to cry without needing to be ashamed."_ (lol, it sounds so much better in German, but what the heck! XD)

So yeah, I suddenly got this idea when I was listening to that song... and instead of Sasuke, I was imagining Itachi as a little kid. Please be gentle - I'm not very experienced in writing about kids! _(sweatdrop)_

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**Prompt #48: Childhood**

Mikoto hummed softly to herself as she sat in the living room, patching up the small but numerous rips in her son's clothes. This had become a rather new pastime hobby of hers ever since he had started showing interest in throwing kunai and shuriken. His father was already quite proud to discover how he was rapidly making progress, though he expected nothing less from a prodigy. When he told his wife about this, Mikoto couldn't help but think that perhaps Fugaku was being a bit too harsh on the boy… he wanted him to grow up way too fast.

The sound of crying suddenly rang through the house as the door was opened with a clatter. Mikoto paused, the needle halfway through the sleeve of the shirt she was currently working on, and gazed expectantly and curiously at the entrance to the living room. The crying got louder and louder, and finally, a boy stumbled into the room.

"Mommy! Mommy!" he wailed.

Right away, Mikoto put the shirt aside and spread her arms for her son. Itachi let himself fall into those arms which embraced him comfortingly while he proceeded to cry, his tears forming a damp spot on her shoulder.

"Itachi, honey, what's wrong?" she whispered.

"Mommy… I… I fell down…!"

"Let mommy have a look, okay?" she asked.

Sniveling, Itachi nodded and (reluctantly) freed himself from his mother's embrace. Mikoto gently wiped away two fresh tears from his face before she quickly looked him over and discovered that he had scraped his knees badly. A trickle of blood ran down his left leg.

"Itachi, I'll be right back, and then I'll care of this, okay?" Mikoto told him, always with that warm, motherly smile on her face.

"Okay," Itachi agreed and crawled off her lap. Once he was alone, he wiped at his eyes, trying to get rid of the tears – but anybody could have told that he had been crying anyway, since his eyes were quite red from doing just that. But Itachi had a reason for trying not to let others know that he had let himself become weak enough to cry…

Soon, Mikoto returned with everything that was necessary to treat the wound. Itachi guessed that perhaps he should have waited with wiping away his tears, for a few more escaped his eyes when the disinfectant stung. When his mother offered him words of comfort, however, he did his best to be tough and not cry anymore.

"There, all done. Is it better now?" Mikoto inquired when she was done.

Relieved, Itachi smiled at her. "Yeah. Thank you, mommy."

"No problem."

Just then, someone else entered the living room.

"Hello, dear," Mikoto said cheerfully, smiling at her husband.

Fugaku, a man of few words, simply nodded to her before his gaze swerved to Itachi. It hardened when he saw the tears stains on his son's face… and the still slightly reddened eyes, of course. One didn't have to be a genius to see that this didn't please Fugaku at all. The demanding look in his eyes made it utterly unnecessary for him to ask out loud why Itachi had cried.

"He fell down and scraped his knees," Mikoto explained, one of her hands gently rubbing Itachi's shoulder.

"Did he, now?" Fugaku replied. His voice was void of any genuine concern.

"Yes, daddy," Itachi muttered, not liking the look his father was giving him. "I… I wasn't watching where I was going."

"Then do so next time. And don't forget that tears are a very explicit display of weakness – exactly that is what a ninja can't afford to let happen."

Looking ashamed of himself, Itachi bowed his head. The floor beneath him suddenly looked blurry… He balled his hands to fists, struggling to hold the tears back. He didn't want to know what his father's reaction would be, should he happen to cry in front of him just because of a reprimand.

"Dear, that's quite enough," Mikoto interrupted, sounding just as stern as Fugaku himself. While said man scowled, Itachi looked up at his mother, surprised and temporarily forgetting about the tears in his eyes.

"I know that a lot is expected of him, but denying him the right to cry every now and then is taking it way too far. He's just three and a half years old!"

"And a prodigy," Fugaku added.

"Prodigy or not, he still is your child, a human being who feels pain and sorrow as well as the need to express that! He's not a tool you can shape as you please by telling him what to do and what not to do!" Mikoto retorted.

"If he wants to be successful later on, he should know what constitutes a good ninja as early as possible and live up to that. And you do want to be successful, don't you, Itachi?" he asked, finally directly addressing the boy again.

"Yes," Itachi answered quietly.

"Then you know what you must do." With those words, Fugaku left the living room again.

Noticing her son's dejected look, Mikoto hugged him and whispered into his ear: "You mustn't let your father know that I told you this, but… you don't have to be ashamed if you do cry – now even less than later on in life. That's just one of the wonderful things about childhood. And even when you're grown up, there will be situations in which tears are absolutely appropriate. Please remember that."

"I will, mommy," Itachi mumbled, his unease from earlier on (and even a wisp of anger) ebbing away as he enjoyed the warmth of her embrace.

Nowadays, Itachi didn't cry anymore when he got wounded, of course, but that childhood memory was one of the few he held close to his heart even after having massacred the clan. And on rare occasions, when the pain was really immense, he would imagine hearing those gently spoken words of comfort… maybe even being in her arms again… and he would feel better.

**(word count: 1'000)**

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I absolutely love the songs of that particular singer... Udo Jürgens... the lyrics in themselves are brilliant, and combined with the melodies... ah, they're just perfect for reminiscing and daydreaming! :) Mom used to be a huge fan of him, and it's thanks to her that I know about him (my friends think I'm nuts because they hate music like that, haha!)...

Please review and tell me what you think! And even if you don't, I hope you'll have a great week!


	31. Prompt 32: Moonlight

Heh... although I just wrote this recently, I have already forgotten where the inspiration came from. Sorry if I keep talking about that, but I kinda like to keep track of why I wrote these (mostly) oneshots... ;)

Believe it or not, I've already said all I've got to say except for one more thing: thank you so much for your reviews, **SkywardShadow** and **Art is a bang XD**! They really motivated me anew and made me very happy! :)

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**Prompt #32: Moonlight**

It was a beautiful and peaceful night; one that was almost a shame to waste with sleep, which was exactly why Sasuke was still awake while his teammates and their sensei had fallen asleep an hour or so ago. A small, content smile played on Sasuke's lips as he gazed at the heavens above, where a silver moon was surrounded by countless twinkling stars. He rarely slept on nights of a full moon anyway, instead contenting himself with watching how the moonlight made the environment look different from when it was bathed in sunlight. Plus it was far more pleasant to let **moonlight** shine into one's eyes…

The night, though peaceful, was far from quiet. Sasuke was lying between Naruto and Sakura. Naruto was snoring loudly, sounding remarkably like a pig. Sakura was cuddling her pillow, and the smacking noises she made every now and then left little imagination to what she was dreaming about. Not that Sasuke gave a hoot in hell, however…

Suddenly, the «pig» on Sasuke's right shifted, and while a weight settled itself on the Uchiha's shoulder, an arm draped itself over his stomach.

"Mmmmmh… Sakura-chan…" an obviously dreaming Naruto mumbled, rubbing his head against Sasuke's, like a cat marking its territory.

"Dobe?" Sasuke questioned, turning his head to look at Naruto, who was drooling a bit with a dopey smile on his face. A lovely shade of pink adorned his cheeks as he kept on dreaming – and that made Sasuke jealous. Yes, he had a crush on the "loud, obnoxious blond". Thankfully, since they were on the same team, he didn't need to "watch him from afar"… His only problem was that Sakura kept pestering him. Sasuke dearly wished she would wake up and smell the coffee: she annoyed him to no end. Period.

"Sakura-chan… I wanna kiss you…" Naruto pleaded, puckering his lips.

Nobody who was right in their minds would even attempt to resist this temptation, Sasuke thought as he feasted his eyes on those lips which he had already kissed before. That (coincidental) kiss was to blame for him getting hooked on Naruto. But this time, it wouldn't be an "accidental" kiss – yet the moment was only **almost** perfect.

Why? Because Naruto was thinking about Sakura instead of him, Sasuke. But even though that thought alone was enough to make his blood boil, he wouldn't let that get in his way of kissing his one and only dobe again.

"What are you waiting for, then?" he whispered, craning his neck a bit until the distance between their lips was practically nonexistent.

"Sa –" Naruto began, but was silenced when warm lips met his own in a passionate kiss. He hummed contently, still believing that he was with Sakura in a field of flowers.

Hearing Naruto say Sakura's name just before they kissed was the last thing Sasuke wanted, so he had acted quickly and cut that dreamy murmur short by embracing the opportunity. He didn't regret a single second of it, and it got even better when he felt Naruto's tongue brush against his lips. Sasuke moaned softly and affectionately nipped the other's lower lip in response.

Perhaps that was why Naruto's blue eyes suddenly snapped open, and for once he quickly realized what situation he was in. Spluttering, he wrenched himself out of Sasuke's embrace and scrambled away.

"T-Teme! What the hell are you doing?"

"What you asked me to do, dobe."

"What?! When did I ask you to kiss me?!"

"Just now. And don't deny that you liked it – you were about to use your tongue on me…"

"I bet you just made that up! Geez, I think you're losing your mind…!" Naruto muttered.

"It's not my mind that I'm losing." Pretending not to notice the blond's confused look, Sasuke lay down again and smirked. "Go to sleep, dobe."

"…But no kissing me anymore," Naruto warned as he settled down again too, though not quite as close to Sasuke as before.

"Whatever," was the calm response.

Sasuke kept his promise, though the next day, the team already had its first squabble of the day over the fact that they had awoken to discover that Sasuke was hugging Naruto from behind…

**(word count: 700)**

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And now I'm off to bed... I hope to hear from you guys again, and have a nice day... night... or whatever. Depending on where you are. XD


	32. Prompt 81: Anniversary

Hi guys! Here's my last installment before I start work - which will have a major influence on how much time I can spend on this story, of course. But I promise to keep up with it as good as I can, don't worry! ;)

As for this chapter... I got the idea when I was watering the plants. I was standing on a chair to reach a hanging pot (forgive me if that expression is weird), and because the damn hose was leaking a bit, I got somewhat wet myself - then I suddenly had this idea. So blame the gardening! ;p

My calender tells me that right now, it's September 14th, which means that this chapter is dedicated to someone special! I know that I had initially planned to post something different, but I'm kinda fond of this one, so I decided to go with this one instead! Hope you like it, **-Nightly Halo-**, and congratulations! Happy birthday! (And thanks for your great support so far, I'm very grateful!)

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**Prompt #81: Anniversary**

As usual after reporting to the Hokage when he had completed a mission, Sasuke Uchiha propped himself on the railing just outside the building and took a moment to gaze at the village.

Even now, ten years after he had returned, it felt like coming home anew. Sometimes he wondered how he had actually managed to leave it behind, all the lusting for power aside. This was the place where all the people who had ever cared for him lived, the place where he found trust, affection and support…

Then again, would he have reached his goal if he **hadn't** left? Would he have gotten revenge on his brother, who had actually cared for him all along, as he had come to know? That was a question he would never be able to answer.

He knew that he should be eternally grateful – and he was. For all he had done, he would have deserved a death sentence, but particularly thanks to his friends who had never ceased to see him as one of their own, the Hokage had given him another chance. And although he had redeemed himself in the meantime, of course no one would ever be able to forget that he had once betrayed them. He knew that he couldn't blame them for that. But now he was back and could lead a normal life, and he was enjoying that.

Looking forward to getting home again, he stood upright again, and with a small smile, he set off.

On the way, he made a detour and ended up in Konoha's flower shop, where he met Ino.

"Ah, hi Sasuke! It's been a while!" the blonde greeted him cheerfully.

"Hello Ino. Yeah… I haven't been around much lately. Quite a few missions, you know. Sometimes I think that Tsunade is still testing me," he replied, shaking his head a bit.

"You know, that guess isn't even all that far-fetched. After all, she did give you a speech on treachery, didn't she?"

"Don't remind me," he muttered, remembering exactly that incident. He had to admit that Tsunade had been beyond intimidating…

Ino laughed a bit. "Anyway; is there something I can do for you?"

"Yes. I'd like to purchase a bouquet."

She goggled at him. "You, buying flowers?! Did I miss something? Is today special?"

"Yes, today is **very** special, in fact. Don't tell me you have forgotten why – I bet Sakura still hasn't stopped having occasional crying fits over it," Sasuke answered, testing if she would catch on by herself.

And she did; he could tell that by the way her pale blue eyes widened before she exclaimed: "Of course! How could I have forgotten?! Hang on a moment while I get the prettiest flowers…!"

To Sasuke's surprise, his thoughts had barely begun to drift away when Ino announced that she was done.

"That was fast," he remarked when a very beautiful bouquet took up his field of vision.

Ino beamed, looking pleased with herself. "I figured that you wouldn't want to hang around too long: you look kinda tired, and I know that you want to be someplace else now."

"Well observed… So, what do I owe you?"

She thought for a moment, then looked around as if hoping not to get caught before naming the price and adding in a whisper: "Since this is for a special occasion, I've given you a discount. And congratulations, by the way!"

"Thank you," he said, paying for the flowers and nodding in response to her wave as he left the shop. Now that that was taken care of, he went straight home. He was anticipating it so much that he was quite happy not to meet anyone he knew on the way.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

"Tadaima!" he called when he entered the house, taking off his shoes.

There was no response. Frowning because he would have bet a fortune that he would get bowled over the moment he came back, Sasuke wandered off in search of his own private welcoming committee. Several minutes later, he finally looked out the back door – and found what he was looking for. Making no effort whatsoever to suppress a smile at that sight, he walked across the lawn, not making a sound quite yet.

Naruto was engaged in his formerly secret hobby of gardening as he watered one of the flowerbeds with the hose, humming a tune under his breath. It was a cross between happy and sad as he thought about Sasuke. He had tried to avoid it, but he just was unable to make a secret out of the fact that he missed the other very much; at first, he had thought that he would handle it quite well – after all, he had spent quite a few years constantly missing Sasuke – but the last two months had seemed to last forever.

"Hey," a pleasant-sounding deep voice said from behind him.

Recognizing that voice instantly, which made his spirits soar sky-high, Naruto whirled around.

"Sasuke!"

Unfortunately, he had forgotten about the hose, and so Sasuke got doused with cold water.

"ACKPTH!"

"Gah! I'm sorry, Sasuke! So sorry!" Naruto cried, dropping the hose as if it had burned him.

Gasping, Sasuke shook his head wildly, directing a ridiculously little bit of the water back at Naruto. He was still soaked, though, and got a dark, almost murderous look on his face as he gripped the bouquet so tightly that his knuckles turned white.

The Jinchuuriki paled with fear and frantically tried to come up with a way to calm the Jounin down. Sweet-talk, perhaps?

"Listen, Sasuke, honey, I didn't mean to do that –"

The look got even darker, if possible. Oh well, it had been worth a shot. Knowing that his time had just about run out, Naruto tore at his hair as he tried to come up with another solution. But his mind was just spouting nonsense, thus rendering him absolutely helpless.

After watching the other ninja silently panic for another moment, the murderous glint in his eyes vanished, and Sasuke also loosened his grip on the flowers. In fact, he even smiled a bit.

"I should have known," he said softly.

This put an abrupt end to Naruto's spasm of fear, and he cocked his head. "Known what?"

"That it was a bad idea to sneak up on you when you're holding the hose."

Naruto rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "Gee, I'm really sorry… I guess I just got excited when I realized that you're back."

"It's okay. I'll think of it as a free shower."

"But you don't like to shower cold."

"You're right; I don't. But if you really, **really** want to apologize, perhaps you'd want to have a long warm shower with me afterwards," Sasuke suggested with a seductive look.

A truly sunny smile lit up Naruto's face. "Now you're talking!"

Sasuke took a moment to simply regard that smile, not at all minding the temporary silence that fell when Naruto stared back. In his opinion, that smile was unrivaled… and so unique. It was one of the many things he liked about Naruto.

"Kami, dobe… I missed you," he finally sighed.

That short, simple statement made Naruto practically glomp him, kissing Sasuke's cheek as he did so.

"I missed you too, teme!"

"These are for you, by the way," Sasuke told him when he was released from the embrace, and added as he looked deeply into Naruto's eyes: "Happy anniversary."

When he got a good look at the flowers, all Naruto could think of saying was: "Thank you, Sasuke. I love you so much…"

"I love you too, Naruto."

They sealed the perfect moment with a tender kiss that didn't end all that soon. At their feet, the forgotten hose began to turn the ground into a swamp…

**(word count: 1,300)**

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Please tell me what you think! And have a good Sunday, everyone! Viva la weekend!


	33. Prompt 96: Forever

Whew... what a week! I'm pretty tired, but otherwise it has been pretty good. I'm not even missing vacation too much... yet. Strong emphasis on the "yet" ;)

Anyway; I've decided that it's high time to post another chapter, so I'll give it a shot with the second part of "Space". I actually wrote another version too, but that one was too... I dunno, sappy I suppose. Hope this one is okay.

I hereby dedicate this to everyone who reviewed the last couple of chapters, especially **SkywardShadow** and **Art is a bang XD**! Feel free to imagine that I hugged you just now! :)

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**Prompt #96: Forever**

What had supposed to be only a few moments for himself so he could regain his composure and sort out his thoughts turned into ten minutes, then fifteen; and still Sasuke hadn't returned to the living room. Instead, he had let himself fall back down onto the bed and was staring at the ceiling.

Of all the times to have a mental shock, why did it have to be now? On the other hand, it wasn't every day that your supposedly-dead brother appears out of nowhere and waltzes into your living room.

'_Move already!'_ his younger self screamed. _'I wanna go to nii-san!'_

'_This is absurd! I was absolutely sure that… Damn, I still don't get it! Why didn't he come back earlier?! Why didn't he tell me that he wasn't dead?!'_ the other part of him wondered.

Sasuke had noticed that he had gripped the bed's edge once or twice in an attempt to get up, but that was as far as he got. He still felt too numb… if only he could accept it already!

"God… Itachi…" he mumbled, closing his eyes tightly.

"Sasuke? Are you okay?"

Almost startled by the voice, Sasuke sat up abruptly – just in time to see Itachi enter the bedroom. His brother had stretched out his hands a bit, as if he wanted to make sure not to walk into something. But he had taken no more than two steps into the room when he stopped. One could tell that he actually wished to come closer, but with Sasuke's last reactions in mind, he didn't.

Like in the living room, a silence fell that seemed longer than it actually was.

"You still owe me an answer," Sasuke finally spoke, trying not to let his voice or his eyes betray his emotions. It was far from easy.

Itachi raised an eyebrow, and he had barely begun to think about what he had last been asked when Sasuke curtly reminded him:

"You said you missed me very much, but I don't understand why you had to wait so long to come looking for me. You didn't even tell me you had survived. Meanwhile, ten years have passed…"

"You spent almost just as much time focusing on your goal to get revenge and fueling your hatred. I didn't inform you about my survival so you would get a break from it."

"From what?" Sasuke asked defiantly, by far not satisfied with that answer.

Itachi sighed. "From all the hatred. I know it was I who told you to live your life to hate and eventually kill me, but… as you have learned in the meantime, I didn't truly wish for you to lead a life like that. Madara told me to kill the entire clan… which would have meant killing you as well. But I could never have done that. Instead, I assigned you the task of an avenger. Madara wasn't pleased with me, not at all. He doesn't forgive mistakes, and I paid the price when we last met," he finished, his voice having gotten noticeably quieter at the end.

"Almost," Sasuke interjected. When he was given an inquisitive look, he added: "You didn't die. That's what you meant by «the price», didn't you?"

Itachi merely nodded.

"Let me get this straight: basically, you wanted to do me a favor by not telling me you survived?" Sasuke resumed.

"Think about it, otouto: if I had let it become known that I had survived, you would have come right after me again. Who knows; perhaps you would still be out there, hunting for me, still consumed by all that hatred. But by not knowing of my survival, you believed that you had fulfilled your task, and as far as I can tell, you've regained a more normal life."

"But still… I mourned for you! Heck, I even attended your **funeral**!" Sasuke's voice quickly got louder as he spoke, yet he wasn't yelling. It was a close call, though, and Itachi knew that.

"My funeral…" the older Uchiha muttered thoughtfully.

"I made a memorial for you! Don't you get it? I didn't stop thinking of you anyhow! And you claim you've done me a **favor**?!" The last part was a shrill yell, and Sasuke felt how his eyes became wet.

Itachi didn't see that, but he could hear his brother's anguish. He held up a hand, hoping that Sasuke would be cooperative and fall silent, if only for another moment. To his relief, his hopes hadn't been in vain.

"I won't take back what I said before. Why, you might ask? Simple: you changed your ways and went back to the people who still cared for you. You reset your priorities and allowed light to come back into your life. That might even be an understatement, considering that you are… engaged," Itachi replied, smiling before he uttered that last word.

Sasuke's eyes widened, and he seemed to be frozen for a moment before he smirked, looking quite like his usual self again. "So, the dobe told you, huh?"

"You have strange ways of referring to your loved one," Itachi chuckled, amused.

"Just like Naruto does too," Sasuke retorted. It made Itachi happy to hear his brother's voice sound equally amused instead of angry and shaken.

"Come to think of it, Sasori still calls Deidara «brat» every now and then…"

"What do **they** have to do with that?" Sasuke asked, confused.

"I just said that because they got married two years ago. It was quite a ceremony: Deidara made a bunch of clay birds that flew around, and in the end they exploded. It turned out that they were actual fireworks," Itachi answered, recalling that day.

"…Itachi?"

"Hmm?"

"What are you going to do now?"

"Nothing that involves serious fighting, that's for sure. After all, my eyesight is by far not what it used to be, and there are still a lot of things I want to see. One more usage of the Mangekyou Sharingan could be all it takes to render my eyes useless," Itachi explained in a rather heavy voice.

"It's that bad, then?" Sasuke concluded as he regarded his sibling with a fairly decent amount of genuine sympathy.

Itachi smiled wryly and tried to shrug it off, but Sasuke wasn't fooled: he could tell that the elder was dreading the day when even the sun would become black. But what could he say now? Surely Itachi wouldn't want someone saying a cheesy line such as «I'm sorry»… would he? His musings were interrupted when the other man spoke:

"Sasuke, it's time for me to leave; I shouldn't stay in Konoha any longer than necessary."

The younger Uchiha pursed his lips and briefly paused before he stood up. "Hn." A quite familiar silence fell once again as he led his brother to the door.

"You're leaving?" Naruto inquired, stepping out of the kitchen when they passed.

"I must."

"Oh. It was… nice to have you here, Itachi. Really." Naruto beamed and shook the older Uchiha's offered hand. Before Itachi turned away, though, he gave him a one-armed hug as well. While doing that, he shot an encouraging glance at Sasuke, who was watching them.

"You've got yourself a ball of sunshine there," Itachi remarked amusedly as he took his simple traveling cloak off the hook.

"…Itachi?"

"Hmm?" He paused, looking at Sasuke.

"Will I see you again?"

Itachi blinked. "Well… if you want to, sure." He was glad that Sasuke had asked that; if he was given an opportunity to be part of the other's life again, he definitely would take it. He would find a way. Having put on his cloak in the meantime, he proceeded to say goodbye.

"See you, otouto. I'm very glad to have seen you again." He put a hand on Sasuke's shoulder and lowered his voice: "Please forgive me, but…" Without finishing the sentence, he hugged Sasuke. He longed to even squeeze him a bit, but instead, he treated him as if he were made of glass.

'_Don't push me away, Sasuke… just don't…'_ he thought, closing his eyes tightly.

Sasuke almost couldn't believe that Itachi was really hugging him. Would he have done the same if the tables had been turned? On the other hand, Itachi had sacrificed such a great part of his life just for him… because he loved him so much. Taking advantage of his distraction, what was still left of his younger, innocent self made him hug Itachi back. It was somewhat awkward, yet it felt so good and pleasant… Giving in to that feeling, Sasuke closed his eyes as well.

"It's… it's alright, nii-san. Goodbye…" he whispered.

With a content sigh, Itachi allowed himself to hold his brother a bit tighter. Perhaps this was their new beginning; a beginning when they would be there for each other forever, when he no longer would be an obstacle for Sasuke to overcome… a beginning when they would be reunited in love instead of hatred and illusions.

**(word count: 1,500)**

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I know it's not as good as the first part, but I didn't want to write it five times or so until it might turn out the way I wanted it to (hey, otherwise I wouldn't have time to write more prompts). Still, it should be... acceptable.

Please review and keep my motivation going! I love your feedback...! :)


	34. Prompt 71: Rain

I wrote this last evening while I was listening to a bunch of rather sad songs. It's rather new for me because it's written in the present tense. I really wonder what you'll think about it. Personally, I think it's rather sad, but who says that you will agree with me...?

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**Prompt #71: Rain**

Graveyards are very silent and lonely places. The only time when "many" people are there is when a funeral is held. Today, Konohagakure's graveyard is empty, yet a grave is being visited all the same. It just is located somewhere else.

The Uchiha district has been deserted for many years now. A lot of dust has gathered in the once so clean houses, and the crack in the wall where Uchiha Itachi had flung a kunai is still clearly visible. But there is one spot that isn't dusty. It is located between the trees that grow behind the district.

A figure dressed in dark clothing emerges from the house closest to the trees. The clothes are either black or dark blue. Everything about him is dark: the clothes, his black hair and his eyes which stare glassy-eyed at the spot he is approaching. His mouth is a more or less straight line. But wait; there is one thing about him that isn't dark. The bouquet he is holding isn't as dark as the rest of him; the flowers are arranged in a beautiful flurry of pink, light blue and purple.

When he gets close enough to read the inscription on the stone, a smile plays on his lips. But it is an empty smile that doesn't reach his eyes. Their black depths depict nothing else but sorrow, ruefulness and longing. He stops in front of the gravestone and stands still, silent as a statue, just gazing at the plain stone as a breeze ruffles his hair. He takes no notice of the darkening skies above.

Finally, he speaks.

"Hello, aniki," he says quietly. "I'm back."

Of course, he gets no answer, but he is silent for another moment, as if listening to a response. He smiles a bit more, though now it clearly is a pained smile. "I brought you some new flowers. I hope you like them." He kneels down and puts down the bouquet, propping it up against the stone.

The flowers have not been chosen randomly, for flowers do speak a language of their own. Beautiful purple hyacinths stand for sorrow and saying: «I'm sorry, please forgive me.» Carnations with petals of a soft pink silently promise that the recipient will never be forgotten. And dainty, sky-blue forget-me-nots ask for exactly what their name says. They also symbolize memories; the happy ones being the reason why he had chosen to include those flowers in the bouquet. He had long since given up pushing them away, even welcoming them at times. This is the bouquet's message.

"I wish I knew what you are doing right now. Probably something you like… even though I have no real idea what that could be. The only times I was with you were either when you were training, getting ready for a mission or coming back from them. I wonder if I could also count the times at the dinner table, even though chichi was having you entirely for himself. What do you think, aniki?"

He silences yet again and closes his eyes, looking like someone who is concentrating very hard to hear a very faint whisper that the wind barely carries to his ears. After about a minute, he opens his eyes a little bit, staring at the engraved name.

"Wherever you are, I hope you have found peace and can relax for a change. You were always devoted to your function of a double agent. I can't imagine how hard it must have been. I wish I could have helped you. I wish I had known that you had been protecting me all along, that you had never stopped loving me. If there was one thing about the past I could undo, it would be hating you relentlessly, which ultimately led to your death. And… even though I know that is exactly what you were aiming for, I want to ask for your forgiveness. If only I had known…"

He bows his head and closes his eyes tightly; tears have welled up in them as he spoke. He is not willing to cry – at least not yet. But it is hard to suppress the urge to just let it all out as his heart aches for his deceased brother. Thinking about how he had killed him, how he had devoted his life to that single moment… there are plenty of times when he hates himself for doing so, for not knowing the truth even though he knows that there is no way he could have known any better. His guilt and pain is fueled by the strong wish that his sibling were still alive, even now that he knows the truth. His mind tortures him by frequently imagining them setting the whole conflict aside and spending wonderful moments together. More memories he could cherish forever. But they are only figments of his imagination, a dream, a wish that can never come true.

He purses his lips as he continues to fight the sorrow. He endures the vicious swipes at his heart whenever he thinks about anything associated with his brother: a smile, a poke in the forehead, rejection, and of course their last fight. The moment in which Itachi transferred some of his powers to him. That final smile on his face before he fell to the ground, dead, as lifeless eyes seemed to stare at the sky.

From the dark clouds above, one raindrop after another falls down to the Earth. In the village, everyone seeks shelter, but Uchiha Sasuke stays where he is. As the rain pours down harder, he finally stops fighting the tears and lets them cascade down his cheeks. In the rain, nobody can see how he cries. Smiling almost amusedly, he sighs.

"Ever notice how practically every time I visit you, it rains? It's almost as if the heavens are weeping with me. Or is it you who is weeping with me? Are these your tears, aniki? The tears I never saw you shed, except for that single one in the night you left me?" A sad, bitter laugh escapes his lips. It always happens when he thought about how he was most likely just talking to himself. Why was he asking all those questions when nobody was here to give him an answer?

With a strangled sob, he bows down until his forehead touches the now wet ground. One trembling hand reaches out to touch the stone.

"I miss you so much, Itachi! I wish I could have you back! Why did it have to end like this…?!"

The rain has drenched his clothes, making them cling to his body, and still he doesn't get up to get out of the downpour. He will stay where he is until he is all cried out, and he will have regained more tears to shed by the next death day of Itachi. The only thing he wishes for just then is for his brother to hug him and tell him that everything is okay, that it is all a bad dream. The wind seeps through his bangs and caresses his face like a loving hand, the hand of an angel he doesn't think he deserves.

**(word count: 1,200)**

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Feel free to send me a review! Even if I might freak out when I see it (which will most probably be at work because I can't stand waiting until I get home again)...

Love ya all!


	35. Prompt 82: Contentment

I decided to post this prompt since I felt pretty much like Itachi this weekend. Seriously; on Saturday, all I basically did was sleep! XD Lucky my parents aren't home, otherwise at least Mom surely would have complained that I was just doing nothing...

I hope you'll like this, so enjoy, and I hope you'll have a lovely week! Me, I'm looking forward to work! Yes, folks, I am looking forward to it - if someone had told me three weeks ago that I would say this, I would have declared them insane :)

**Note:** AU, as in: modern world and therefore non-massacre

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**Prompt #82: Contentment**

With a sigh, Sasuke sat back and stretched thoroughly, topping it off with cracking his knuckles. Finally, he was done with his math homework! Even though it was only Friday evening, he had already hopped to it; otherwise he would end up procrastinating it for the entire weekend, which would lead to a massive dispute with his father. No doubt that the man would be happy to see that his disciplinary upbringing was paying off.

As he stood up from his chair, he closed the math book with a bit more force than necessary, thus almost slamming it shut. Not giving that any thought just then, he went into the kitchen to get himself a cup of coffee. As he waited for the machine to stop pouring out the caffeinated liquid, he had to grin when he thought about how Itachi would laugh at him; according to his older brother, he was hardly drinking "coffee", but rather "white coffee". He said that even though Sasuke still was most probably too young to drink coffee the real way, the younger one should name his drink properly.

After filling the cup to the rim with milk, he sipped it as he went into the living room. He raised his eyebrows when he saw that the TV was still running, but otherwise there was no light in the room. Shaking his head, he approached their father's armchair, where an arm that hung limply over the arm rest indicated that Itachi was occupying it.

"Aniki, you shouldn't be watching TV in the dark; it's not good for your eyes –" Sasuke began, but silenced when he got a good look at his brother.

Itachi was sprawled in the chair and fast asleep. His head had almost dropped onto his shoulder, and his lips were parted, a soft snore escaping them each time he exhaled. Sasuke believed to even see a thin string of saliva that ran out of the corner of Itachi's mouth.

Even though the nineteen-year-old had announced that he was tired when he had come home around seven, Sasuke wouldn't have guessed that he would actually fall asleep in front of the TV, though perhaps that had depended on what Itachi had been watching. Currently, a thriller was being featured, and that was Itachi's favorite type of movie.

Putting the cup down on the table next to the chair, Sasuke proceeded to gently poke his sibling's shoulder.

"Itachi? Itachi! Aniki, wake up! Hey!"

Since prodding proved to be useless, Sasuke began to shake the shoulder, continuing his calls. Finally, Itachi closed his mouth and grunted, though not opening his eyes yet.

"Hmm?!"

"Itachi, don't you want to go to bed to sleep instead?"

"M'fine."

"Come on, don't you want to at least lie down?!"

"M'tired."

"I'll help you. Do yourself a favor…"

"Couch."

"What?"

"Couch," Itachi repeated drowsily, opening one eye just a little bit.

Sasuke blinked, then nodded, seeing the logic of the idea – they actually had a sofa bed, which meant that he wouldn't need to escort (or rather: carry) Itachi all the way upstairs to his bed. "Okay. Hang on a moment…"

Just a few moments later, he had prepared the provisional bed, using the blankets their mother always had nearby. Of course, pillows were also there. Only a few steps separated the armchair from the sofa, yet when Itachi had crossed that distance (while heavily relying on Sasuke's support), he collapsed on the bed as if he had run a marathon.

"Gee, you're really bushed, aren't you?" Sasuke asked, watching as the older Uchiha sluggishly got comfortable.

"Mmh-hmm… long day…" Itachi mumbled, bedding his head on one of the pillows before adding quietly: "Sorry, Sasuke."

"For what?"

"You said you'd want to have some fun…" Itachi paused to yawn. "…when Mom and Dad are gone for once."

Now Sasuke remembered asking for that when they had been told that their parents were going to a friend's house for the weekend. On the other hand, Itachi had been quite tired for the last few days after working hard for his college classes without getting enough rest, so it was only natural for him to eventually give in to his body's by now desperate need for some proper sleep.

"That's alright. Tomorrow's another day."

"You can still watch TV if you want."

"No, I don't wanna keep you awake…"

"Sasuke, I'd even be able to fall asleep in the midst of a gunfight, so just go ahead," Itachi invited him with a smile, patting the bed.

Noticing that, Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "There? Right next to you?"

Itachi didn't exactly give him a puppy-eyes look, but there was something about it that made it impossible for Sasuke to refuse the offer even if he had wanted to – which he didn't, by the way. Making a decision, he quickly went to turn off all the other lights before sitting down beside Itachi, remote in hand. As he adjusted the volume a bit, he felt how his hand got grabbed and was being held tightly. Without even having watched the screen for fifteen seconds yet, he looked down at Itachi, who was smiling happily. He looked so content, so blissful that Sasuke doubted that he would ever really know exactly how much the other loved him. Very few of his friends could claim to have an equally deep, confidential relationship with their siblings… Whenever he had a problem he didn't want to discuss with their mother or father, he could count on Itachi. When either one of them felt sad or lonely and the other was there, they just needed to be together. Comforting words weren't necessary; just the presence of one another…

After the movie was done, Sasuke attempted to watch a repetition of the evening news, but as the reporters covered the daily developments of the stock market and who had assaulted whom with bombs or a gunfire, Sasuke soon lost track of the whole thing as he turned away from all the grief and negativity, just to look at his brother's serene expression again. Maybe he had fallen asleep over **that**… after all, it was getting boring to hear the same old story every day anew.

Putting an end to it, Sasuke turned off the TV and lay down as well, snuggling up against Itachi. Even though they were so close, it was too dark for him to see the other anymore, but that didn't matter. He didn't need eyesight to know that that look of contentment was still on the elder's face, and a similar look dawned on his own face when he felt Itachi put his arms around him, bringing them even closer together.

"Goodnight, aniki," he whispered.

To his surprise, he even got a response: "Goodnight, otouto. Thank you for staying…"

"You're still awake?!" Sasuke exclaimed, though not too loudly, staring at where he guessed Itachi's eyes would be. He wondered if they were open or not. "Wait a minute; have you been awake all this time?"

"No, I've been drifting in and out of sleep, so don't think it's your fault. Looks like we still got some quality time out of the evening anyway, hmm?"

"Yeah… and tomorrow, we'll have even more."

"I'll be up for it, I promise."

"You don't need to promise me something like that, Itachi."

This time, the only answer he got was a soft chuckle, and a moment later a soft kiss was placed upon his forehead. Sighing because he knew that no more words needed to be spoken, Sasuke fidgeted a bit until he was resting right beneath Itachi's chin, and before long, they both had let themselves get carried away to dreamland after drifting off to sleep while listening to and feeling each other's calm and regular breathing.

**(word count: 1,300)**

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Hope it was acceptable. As usual, feel free to notify me about any falsely used expressions...

Please write a review if you can spend the time, and otherwise... well, just take care and bye-bye. :)


	36. Prompt 31: Flowers

_(sigh)_ Forgive me for not updating in almost a week, but I've been very busy and very tired upon getting home in the evening. I hardly ever turned on my laptop, even! But I hope I won't have to let you wait like this so often anymore. My parents are back from their cruise, and I'm still alive, even after I forgot to water the plants and let quite a few of them die (luckily for me, they weren't the tropical ones and would have died soon anyway).

So now that everything's back to normal and I feel refreshed again and ready for a new week, here's another prompt for you guys! Sorry it's a short one, but sooner or later, I'll have to "get rid" of those too, ne? ;)

**Note:** AU, I suppose - because of the song mentioned at the end. I don't own it, by the way.

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**Prompt #31: Flowers**

"Nii-san, I wanna go on the swings! Will you give me a push? And can we go on the see-saw? I'm so happy that we finally have an afternoon to ourselves…!"

"So am I, otouto. But do remember to breathe – I don't want you to drop dead because you forgot about respiration," Itachi replied, fondly ruffling his overenthusiastic little brother's hair.

"Really? Oh, okay. I'll try to remember. Hey, do you think we should go on the swings first… or on the see-saw? And maybe I could have another go at the spring riders, I'm sure I won't fall off this time –"

"Itachi! Over here!"

The older Uchiha looked in the direction of the voice that called to him, and for a moment, he looked stunned before exclaiming happily:

"Shisui!"

"Nii-san?" little Sasuke questioned, pouting a bit upon losing the other's attention so abruptly.

Before Itachi could answer, Shisui had run over to them and immediately gave his friend a bear hug.

"Man, it seems ages ago when I last saw you!"

"Oh, don't be a drama queen; I've just been gone for a couple of months!"

"Well, excuse **me** that you're my best friend…!"

They laughed loudly as Shisui cuffed Itachi's shoulder in a playful manner.

"Nii-san!" Sasuke chimed in, impatiently tugging at his sibling's shorts.

"Oh… um, listen, otouto, could you excuse me for a few moments? I'd like to exchange a few words with Shisui…"

The pout returned ten-fold to the youngster's face as he crossed his arms, sulking. Why was it that every time he wanted to spend some time alone with his brother that something interfered?! And since he knew how much Shisui had been missed, he was rightfully suspicious of the "few words" part.

Itachi knelt down in front of Sasuke, sensing that he wasn't being trusted. "I promise I won't be long. Honestly. Just go play with the others a bit, okay? You should start hanging around other people anyway."

Sasuke glanced at the other children and frowned. Itachi sighed. Their mother was right; apart from Itachi, the boy hardly socialized with anyone. Why on earth their younger son was so drawn to him, they didn't know or didn't understand.

"Please, Sasuke. I promise I'll get back to you. Unless you want to come with us…"

Cocking his head at that suggestion, Sasuke looked at Shisui, who grinned and saluted him.

"Hiya, squirt!"

Even when Sasuke scowled angrily, he looked rather cute, Itachi thought amusedly.

"Alright. But remember your promise, nii-san," Sasuke agreed, trying to sound threatening.

"I will."

Reluctantly, Sasuke slouched over to the other little kids while Itachi and Shisui stretched out beneath a tree, catching up on things that had happened since their last meeting.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

Later, Itachi bade Shisui goodbye, keeping the promise he had made. And no sooner was he alone when Sasuke came running towards him as if stung by a black adder. He wasn't a happy camper at all: a bunch of flowers had been stuck into his hair. Evidently, the culprits were a blonde, her pink-haired friend and a blond boy, all three of them snickering gleefully.

"See what happens when you leave me alone?!" Sasuke screeched, pointing at his hair.

"What's wrong, Sasuke? Don't you like flowers?" Itachi asked, reaching out to touch one of the daisies.

"Not in my hair, no! You owe me big time for this!"

"Hmm… fine. How about an ice cream?"

It was remarkable how much Sasuke brightened at that suggestion. "Yay, ice cream!"

"Come, otouto," Itachi invited him, and a split second later, Sasuke had jumped on his back – he **loved** piggyback rides. As Itachi headed for the nearest ice cream parlor, Sasuke grumbled about the "stupid flowers", trying to get them out of his hair. Suddenly, Itachi was reminded of something, and with an almost dreamy smile, he began to hum a tune under his breath.

"What are you singing, nii-san?" Sasuke inquired.

"Just an old song…"

Sasuke shook his head, not understanding what made Itachi suddenly want to sing, and continued to fiddle with his hair while Itachi kept on humming:

"_If you're going to San Francisco, be sure to wear some flowers in your hair…"_

**(word count: 700)**

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Somehow, this just popped into my mind when I was recently listening to Scott McKenzie's "If You're Going To San Francisco". Lol, little Sasuke with flowers in his hair...! XD Gomen nasai, Sasuke, but that's just my weird fantasy! ;)

Review, please! Oh, and many thanks to **susana** - I really appreciated the additional reviews I got from you! :)

(P.S: I've rediscovered an ItaSasu oneshot I had started quite a while ago, and I'll probably finish it sometime soon - it's too long to belong in this collection of prompts, but what the heck...)


	37. Prompt 75: Crisis

_(yawn)_ Halfway into this new week and I'm already bushed. That's quite a change compared to the past two weeks. I really need to go to bed when I say I will, which means I should be in bed by eleven-thirty for the latest. The good thing about that is that I've begun to appreciate weekends a lot more! XD

I had a good day today, and because of that as well as another (good) reason, I've decided to post another chapter! I had originally imagined this one to be a little bit different, but I hope this result is acceptable anyhow. But enough of my blabbering - enjoy, my friends! _(crosses fingers and makes note to go back to writing on the train instead of just gazing into space)_

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**Prompt #75: Crisis**

"_What are you doing?!"_

"_What does it look like to you? I'm leaving."_

"_But why?!"_

"_Did you really think I'd come back? You're even more naïve than I thought." Smirk._

"_Please, Sasuke! Don't go!"_

"_It's too late, Naruto. You can keep on clinging to those futile dreams of yours, but I must gain more power!"_

"_No!"_

_A pale young man threw back his head as he laughed in an almost maniacal way. His friend's anguish seemed to highly amuse him in a sick, twisted way that didn't fit his character – he wasn't supposed to be so evil, so heartless. At least, that's what __**they**__ thought…_

_Laughing even harder when tears poured out of two blue eyes, the raven whirled around and ran off, fading into the shadows. The pleas for him to stop and come back fell on deaf ears, and all too soon, the eerie echo of that insane laughter was all that remained to hint his former presence._

"_Sasuke…!!" _Sasuke… Sasuke…

With a startled, almost frightened gasp, Naruto sat bolt upright in bed, sweating all over and his eyes wide. He couldn't tell if his face was wet because of sweat or tears. And frankly, he didn't care at all.

Normally, he would have quickly calmed down by reminding himself that it was just a dream, but this time, he was far from finding that comfort. Not when his heart was beating so fast and hard that it hurt. It was beating with fear, dread and pain. Like it had done back at the Valley of the End; when Sasuke had openly called his friends, his upbringing – the entire village – meaningless. Insignificant. A waste of time. Those snide remarks, spoken in that scorn-filled voice, had made Naruto feel as if his heart was being torn to pieces, and that had hurt so much that he wished never to feel like that again.

Still hearing that horrible laughter in his mind, he jumped out of bed and ran. Being so beside himself, he was unable to think about which directions to take. Fortunately, his instinct took care of that: left, right, straight, right again…

'_Don't go…!'_

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

He was just beginning to recall what it was like to sleep deeply, yet it still didn't take a lot of noise to wake him up. The sound of someone practically crashing through his front door was more than sufficient. And hearing pounding footsteps rapidly approaching made him want to jump out of bed and grab his katana.

No sooner had he flung the bedspread aside when Sasuke scowled, remembering that Tsunade had confiscated that weapon, naturally not trusting him yet. Ergo, he would have to fully rely on kunai and shuriken weapon-wise.

Just as he was about to retrieve a few of those, the door to his room burst open, and a pajama-clad ninja stumbled in, out of breath and looking extremely shaken.

Sasuke raised an eyebrow, and all his intentions of arming himself got washed away instantly.

"Naruto?" he wondered.

For a moment, Naruto just stood there, gawking and gasping, but then he got a strange look on his face that Sasuke couldn't quite place. He knitted his brows, studying that face – were those trails of sweat or tears? – and those eyes (now he was strongly guessing that the second option was more likely). He saw dread… and hope. Frantic, anxious hope.

"What are you coming here for in the middle of the night? Afraid I'll be gone in the morning?"

Admittedly, it was neither the best joke nor taunt in that situation, but Sasuke hadn't thought about the consequences: the look on Naruto's face became more intense as his eyes widened. Tears flooded them as Sasuke cocked his head. To the blond, the other could just as well have said:

"_Turn your sorry back on me now and I won't be here when the sun rises again."_

No! He couldn't afford to lose him again! He had failed twice already, losing his best friend to the darkness over and over again. If he let that happen just once more… Naruto had no idea what he would do then. A burst of dreadful fear overpowered his rational thinking, and acting impulsively, he cried out:

"No! Don't go, Sasuke!"

As if fearing that the Uchiha was a mere mirage and would fade away the next instant, he crossed the room, tripping over his own feet as he went. His fall was broken by Sasuke, whose neck involuntarily provided support when two arms were flung around it. The bed dipped under Naruto's weight, and Sasuke was yanked downwards as well.

"What the devil…?! What's **wrong** with –" he began to exclaim indignantly, but paused when the sounds of crying reached his ears. Strangled, sorrowful sobs unlike those he had heard three days ago. He felt how Naruto dug his fingers into his nightshirt. The fabric quickly became damp where the shorter ninja's face made contact with it. The realization that his friend had been reduced to a picture of misery made his face soften.

"Naruto, calm down…" he murmured, hoping that he could calm his former teammate down. Tears like these just didn't look right on him. Dropping his original intention of pushing him away upon being hugged so vehemently, Sasuke put his arms around Naruto's shaking form.

"Sasuke, please don't go! I don't want to lose you again… like that…" It was rather hard to understand what he was saying because he was desperately trying to regain his composure.

"You really missed me, right?" Practically by itself, one of Sasuke's hands began to slowly rub Naruto's back.

"So much that I can't find words for it," Naruto answered truthfully, holding Sasuke even tighter. "So much that I dreamed about you leaving again."

"Is that why you paid me this surprise visit?"

"Yeah. I was so scared… that you'd be gone, maybe forever."

Sasuke hummed softly. "But I only just came back, and I have completed my task. I have no more reason to leave."

Naruto pushed him away at that remark. "I didn't think you would ever leave at all, so maybe you can understand that I cannot be completely reassured by that statement."

"You don't trust me," Sasuke concluded.

"Not as much as I used to, but I don't completely mistrust you. You're still my friend; that's the way it has always been for me," Naruto replied with the ghost of a smile playing on his lips.

The corners of Sasuke's mouth twitched upwards, hinting at his familiar smirk. "You really are unbelievable, dobe. How could you hold on to your beliefs about me for so long…?"

Naruto's face fell. "Why? Did you… forget that you were and still are my friend? Did you ever truly consider our friendship to be dead?"

A dread of Sasuke's own appeared on the otherwise often stoic face: the dread that Naruto would cry again in such an uncharacteristic fashion. He didn't want to see that happen again, especially not if he was the cause. All he could do was pray that honesty wouldn't be a wrong choice. "I… I don't think so," he answered truthfully. "There were times when I didn't know what to think anymore, but I think that… I never really forgot our bonds, Naruto."

A weak smile of relief dawned on the blond's face, and this raised a smile from Sasuke in return. He put a hand on his comrade's shoulder.

"As long as you're around, I won't ever forget them. Promise."

Naruto hadn't taken his eyes off Sasuke while that was said, and he simply **knew** that the other was being sincere. Relief and happiness washed away his fears, which made him hug Sasuke yet again. And the best thing was that Sasuke returned the embrace in all its intensity.

**(word count: 1,300)**

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Cheesy end, hmm? You know the drill: please tell me what you think! You guys are so amazing, I dare not ask anything more of you! Lots of hugs to all of you who encouraged me to come this far! :)

(P.S: Just thought I'd add this as a random comment, more or less: anybody know the song "Indestructible" by Disturbed? Heard it in a TV commercial recently and loved it right away. It's a kick-ass song to listen to when... well, whenever, actually. I like to listen to it when I am under way in general. Aggressive music is having a revival in my book.) :D


	38. Prompt 35: Love

o.O I haven't updated in 10 days! Gack! You guys, I can't tell you how sorry I am, and all I can say in my defense is the usual thing: work, work, work. _(curses)_ I'm so sorry for being absent for this long! You are hereby given permission to throw rotten tomatoes or whatever you prefer at me! Make sure you don't miss!

Let's see how this one fares. I know it's a bit early for the Christmas stories, but I just couldn't resist (and besides, I'm already pretty much in the spirit; I'm already listening to Christmas music and dreaming of the annual market in Zurich... _(dreams about the Swarovski tree)_). Hope you'll enjoy another dose of fluffiness!

**Note:** AU, non-massacre

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**Prompt #35:** **Love**

"Itachi, bring this box to your mother," Fugaku instructed, handing the box in question to his older son before going up the ladder to the attic again.

"Father, are you sure that can't wait? Don't you need help?" Itachi wondered, watching Fugaku try to retrieve a fairly huge box full of decorations for the tree.

"No, I'll be fine. Run along now…"

With a sigh and a shake of his head, Itachi turned around and headed for the kitchen, where the Christmas dinner was being prepared. He had just reached the tree in the living room when he stopped and looked behind him.

Barely a meter away, Sasuke stopped as well, curiously regarding his older brother with those big, black eyes of his. Moments like these made Itachi wonder if Sasuke was aware of exactly how cute he looked just then or if he simply acquired that cuteness without knowing it…

"What is it, Sasuke? You're following me around like a little puppy, to put it mildly."

Those big black orbs began to shimmer with guilt. "Am I annoying you, aniki?"

'_Crap, not that look…!'_ "No, that's not it. I'm just wondering because you always tail me so closely when it's Christmas… and only **then** to such an extent…"

Sasuke shuffled his feet and briefly eyed the ceiling and the nearby doorways with unmistakable hope. "It's because I don't wanna miss when Mother hangs up the mistletoe." His cheeks turned pink as he spoke, which only added to his cuteness.

"The mistletoe?" Itachi repeated, raising an eyebrow.

"Mother says when you meet someone under the mistletoe, you may kiss them. And I…" He lowered his voice to a rather bashful whisper. "I want to be right there when you're under the mistletoe, aniki."

Well, **that** sure cleared things up. "Ah, you want to kiss me?" Itachi repeated with a chuckle, only using other words.

"…Yeah…"

With a smile still playing on his lips, Itachi put down the box and beckoned Sasuke over. When the eight-year-old stood directly before him, the older Uchiha gently brushed a hair strand out of the boy's face.

"Otouto, why didn't you just say so? You don't need to catch me under the mistletoe to kiss me, you know," Itachi said quietly.

"I… don't?" Sasuke asked.

"Of course not. Kissing is a token of affection, of love, and when you love somebody, you don't have to wait for some mistletoe in order to kiss them."

"Oh. Well, I just thought… you know, because it's –"

"I know," Itachi interrupted, softly pressing a finger to his brother's lips. "But if you want to kiss me now, without the mistletoe, you may do so."

Sasuke's face brightened with a gorgeous smile that Itachi downright adored, then he reached up and kissed the elder on the lips, hoping he was doing it right. He had barely missed an opportunity to watch their parents when they kissed in front of their children; as far as he was concerned, there was no special strategy involved or anything. All he could do was hope that he wasn't being clumsy.

His faint worries were ungrounded, however, for Itachi hummed contently, quickly beginning to enjoy the taste of the other's lips. So far, the only kisses he had given Sasuke had been mere pecks on the cheek, but this… was way different. So tempting, so sweet…

When a thump could be heard from the hallway that led to the attic, the brothers ended the kiss. Now Itachi was slightly pink in the face too, though it was nothing compared to Sasuke.

"Otouto, you stay here and help Father when he'll come, okay?" he instructed his sibling and picked up the box again.

"Okay. …Aniki?" Sasuke asked timidly when Itachi turned around.

"What?"

"May I kiss you again… later?"

Itachi looked over his shoulder. "Sure." As the sounds of a box being pushed along the floor drew closer, he silently pointed first to himself, then put his hand on his heart, and then pointed to Sasuke. And winked.

In understanding, Sasuke's face brightened once more, and that was what brought a really genuine smile to Itachi's face as he finally brought the box to Mikoto.

**(word count: 700)**

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My former German teacher would have said that there's "honey dripping off those words"... lol. Oh well. I just LOVE fluff!

I sincerely hope that you enjoyed it and apologize one more time for the delay! And I hope you'll have a good week! See you, my friends! _(waves)_

(Oh, and one last thing: again, thanks to everyone who reviewed my ItaSasu oneshot! You're simply the best!) :)


	39. Prompt 86: Seeing Red

Another week gone by... man, time sure does fly. At least, that's what I'm thinking. And an extra hour of sleep this weekend, yay! It has been quite a good week indeed! Hope the same could be said for all of you! :)

The idea for this prompt has been haunting my mind for quite a while now, and I'm glad that I finally found the time to write it down! Although, truth to be told, I had written about half of it... but only now did I get around to finishing it. As usual, I hope it's up to scratch. But meh... even if it isn't, this is just fiction and a figment of my imagination, so there. :D

Special thanks go to **froggychick12** and **val1207wong**! Your reviews rocked my socks!

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**Prompt #86: Seeing Red**

Getting something you want is always a great thing, and you feel happy and joyful until your passion for that particular matter dies. Or until something about that matter becomes scary. The second option was true in Naruto's case.

In the six months' time they had been together, Sasuke had never referred to them as «boyfriends». Even the term «lovers» was only seldom used. What he **did** do, however, was refer to Naruto as «mine». At first, that had flattered the blond ninja: for so long, he had been shunned, pushed away. No one had bothered to claim him, the «demon-child» and «monster», as their own. So when Sasuke had first whispered it in his ear, that declaration spoken in a husky, seductive voice – "You're **mine**." – Naruto had been really happy. And that was how it stayed until he found out exactly how serious Sasuke was about his possessiveness.

One by one, his friends began showing certain patterns of behavior that were previously unknown to him. They would act perfectly normal until they were in Sasuke's presence. The way they practically shied away from the Uchiha like frightened horses… Naruto spent a lot of time thinking about that because Sasuke only shrugged when he was asked about the reason, and none of his friends seemed willing to share that specific information with him.

By and by, Hinata, Kiba, Ino and the others began acting like that, but no one went to the same extent like Sakura did. The pink-haired kunoichi who had once almost worshipped Sasuke seemed to be running away from him. One could clearly feel the tension in the air when their eyes met. Sasuke's face would remain impassive, but Sakura couldn't stop her fear from showing. She hardly dared to meet his eyes anymore. She had stopped taunting Naruto, even if it was only meant in a playful way. And if she happened to do it by mistake, she would gasp and make the strong impression that she was praying that Sasuke wouldn't notice.

_(flashback)_

_They had gone out for dinner as Team 7 again, and even though Sasuke wished they wouldn't, it was also yet another occasion on which Sakura and Naruto would celebrate his return._

_Dinner was almost finished when the joking started. Surprisingly enough, the two other ninjas were already starting to look back on those "sans Sasuke" years without becoming all too sad too soon; nothing else could explain why they even joked about certain things._

"…_and there you were, crying your eyes out because we hadn't brought him back again!" Sakura giggled after a while._

"_Yeah, but who was the one who rather sat on the windowsill and watched the moon instead of doing something fun with me?" Naruto shot back._

"_At least __**I**__ wasn't bawling in public," the girl retorted instantly and mimicked him a bit._

"_Well…" Naruto shrugged sheepishly, his goofy smile playing on his lips, but a closer look would show that he had lost a fair amount of his cheerfulness as he remembered how terrible he had felt in that particular moment. Sasuke bothered to take that closer look, and he didn't like that not entirely apparent change. He glared at Sakura, who didn't notice yet as she laughed at her own antics. By laughing at them, she was indirectly laughing at Naruto as well, and that thought didn't sit well with him at all. _

_It was as if that mockery had turned the annoyance he felt around her, a spark, into a blazing fire of hatred. He hated it whenever she laughed at Naruto's expense, hated to see her touch him in any way. In his opinion, she didn't deserve his appreciation. Naruto didn't deserve to be ridiculed. He would put an end to that._

_They had just ordered their desserts (minus Sasuke) when Naruto excused himself to go to the bathroom. Sakura watched him go, but the smile vanished instantly from her face when she felt a hand grip her arm so tightly that she wanted to wince. Instead, she squeaked and whirled around in her seat to come face-to-face with a darkly scowling Sasuke. His gaze was so intense and piercing that there was no mistake to be made about what he thought of her in that moment, and that was what scared her. The way the lights illuminated his pale face that was framed by his long bangs only added to his menacing appearance. There was a threatening growl in his voice as he hissed:_

"_Don't __**ever**__ do that again. If I ever catch Naruto being sad again because of you, be it something you said or did, I will make sure that you'll be sorry. Mark my words."_

_She felt almost like back when she had faced Orochimaru for the first time; that same __petrification__, that same fear that paralyzed her wholly. She tried to answer him, but not a single word escaped her lips. A muscle in his face twitched as he briefly bared his teeth, and with a shudder, she finally managed to nod instead. A rather cruel smile played on his lips, and he abruptly let go of her._

"_Glad you understand."_

_Oh boy, did she ever._

_Naturally, Naruto didn't understand why Sakura's sense for humor seemed to have suddenly died during his brief trip to the bathroom, but __**he**__ wasn't the one whose every movement got watched from the other side of the table, like a prey that was being stalked until it took one wrong step. That could have a tremendous impact on one's behavior. Later, when they said goodbye and she shook his hand for precisely two seconds, he posed the question to Sasuke for the first time:_

"_Why is she acting so strange?"_

_To which Sasuke merely shrugged indifferently, then pulled Naruto close to him as they went home._

_(end flashback)_

One day, Naruto learned the truth: Hinata and Kiba just couldn't take it anymore (Sakura was way too afraid to spill the beans) and filled him in on the terror that was going on behind the scenes. To say that the blond had been appalled would probably be an understatement, and it was with a strong air of disbelief and disappointment that he confronted Sasuke that same evening:

"Why the hell do you do this?! After all they've done for you! They stood up for you when most others would have chased you away! What's the **matter** with you?! They're my friends! And yours too, dammit!"

"Do you really not understand? Can't you answer that question yourself? Well, let me help you anyhow: I am grateful for their support and all, but that is no match for what you mean to me. Remember, Naruto: you're mine. I know you don't want that to change."

"Oh yeah?!"

"Yeah. Just you wait and see."

A tirade of shouting from Naruto's side and his following departure had ended that argument, but Sasuke would indeed be right: before long, what he had declared to be his returned to him, still hurt about the reckless way his friends were being treated, but far from refusing any one of the affectionate touches or sensual (though at times very rough) kisses. Those moments were too addictive to abandon so easily.

Sasuke smirked into yet another deep kiss as he held his prize tightly against him. He could tell that Naruto wanted to run away from him – the part of him, that big part that was oh-so-faithful to each and every one of his friends was telling him to do that before someone might end up getting hurt or worse due to a mere mistake. But there was another part that was just as powerful – most likely even stronger – that told him to stay where he was. Where he **belonged**. And that was exactly why the game kept going on, practically beginning every day anew.

One touch, one wrong word was all it took to set Sasuke off, and woe betide the poor soul who was to blame. Whenever Naruto felt lonely again because of this game, Sasuke reminded him that he would nevermore be as lonely as he had once been, abandoned and unloved. Neither one of them would be doomed to face that again; Sasuke would make sure of that.

Why?

Because any form of competition had nothing on Sasuke Uchiha. Elimination awaited those who wanted to possess what he desired.

**(word count: 1,400)**

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I won't say much more except that I'd be glad to hear from you! Have a nice weekend, and enjoy the rest of October!


	40. Prompt 60: Rejection

Another one that I finished after letting it sit for a while... I had written the first part up to the paragraph line, and then I didn't know how to continue. But now it's done, and I'm actually not all that unhappy with how it turned out. :)

Enjoy, my friends; one-sided SakuSasu and a hint of SasuNaru.

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**Prompt #60: Rejection**

"…So please, Sakura-chan, go out with me!" Naruto begged, even clasping his hands to add a dramatic effect.

Sakura gave him an almost pitying look before her distinctive annoyed frown appeared on her face again. Putting her hands on her hips, she decided to put an end to this pestering. If it would be someone else who was pestering her, she wouldn't mind, but her prayers seemed to be far from getting answered.

"Naruto, stop bugging me! I don't care how often you ask me to go out with you or hang out with you; I just don't want to, and that's final. I'm not interested in **you**, I'm interested in **Sasuke-kun**. I just know that if I keep at it, we can be together, happy forever…!"

She spaced out as she imagined herself frolicking with her all-too-obvious crush, leaving poor Naruto standing there, left out in the rain. He tried to regain her attention by calling her name and giving her very sad looks indeed, but it was all to no avail. She had turned him down again without even batting an eyelash. That was what hurt the most, closely followed by the fact that she could barely speak two or three sentences before uttering Sasuke's name. Letting his shoulders sag, Naruto slouched off, looking quite the opposite of who he usually appeared to be: downcast, miserable, void of all cheerfulness and energy. He kept his eyes glued to the ground as he walked away from the day-dreaming Sakura, and neither one noticed that two black eyes had been watching the whole scene…

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

Hours later, Sasuke was walking down the streets of Konoha, heading for Naruto's apartment. His intention? Ask the dobe out. For a training session. After all, Naruto rarely missed an opportunity to improve his skills, and perhaps he would get a certain someone off his mind.

"Sasuke-kuuuuuuuuuuuun!"

**That** certain someone, to be precise. Sasuke grunted in annoyance and kept on walking.

"Sasuke-kun! Wait!"

A figure darted around him and now stood between him and his destination. Sasuke frowned.

"What do you want?" he huffed.

"Well… um… you know, there's this lovely place we could go to… I overheard Ino-pig saying it's perfect for special moments, so –"

"No."

"Huh?"

"I said no, Sakura. Not now, not ever. Put that idea right out of your mind, because you annoy me. And I don't like annoying people. Understood?"

"But Sasuke-kun –"

"No, Sakura! Leave me the hell alone!" he snarled and spared her a loathsome glare before he whirled around and stalked off. Soon enough, the sounds of her sobbing reached his ears, but neither did it made him want to turn back nor did it touch him in any way. All he could think about was how grimly satisfied he was to have put her in her place like that… now she would know what it felt like when she did the same to other people… people **he** would never turn down like that.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

By nightfall, he returned. To his relief, Sakura was nowhere to be seen. She was probably crying her eyes out at home – not that he cared. Heavens, no. Nimbly, Sasuke jumped up to the roof, where he found his comrade sitting cross-legged and looking up at the dark sky where thousands of stars twinkled.

"You look down in the dumps," he remarked nonchalantly.

"Who cares? Maybe I should give it up," Naruto sighed.

"Give up what?" Sasuke asked, pretending not to know.

"Asking her out. Sakura. Maybe she's right, and I **am **just a nuisance that doesn't know when it's enough."

"She said that to you?" Sasuke sat next to Naruto and looked up at the skies too. In moments like this, one didn't need to look at Naruto to know how he was feeling. He had strong vibes.

"Not exactly. But she did say she's not interested in me and never will be. Then she started talking about **you**, and…" He faltered.

"You were left to stand there like a total idiot, as if you weren't even there?"

"How do you know?!"

Sasuke shot a glance at him before answering: "I see it all the time. It happens whenever you ask her. It's impossible to oversee."

"…You think I should give up?"

Sasuke shrugged.

"But who **would** go out with me, if not her? It's not fair! You've got tons of girls running after you, and you turn them all down! What's wrong with them? I just don't understand…"

"Obviously, I'm not interested in them, dobe."

"I should have known… Are you interested in **anybody**?" Naruto wondered, genuinely curious because Sasuke had never shown any such signs before.

One of the longest pauses ever fell between them before Sasuke answered slowly: "I might be."

"Oh? What's her name? One of your fangirls?"

"I'm not **that** shallow-minded."

"Ino?"

"Pfft."

"Hinata?"

"Please."

"Sakura?"

"Get real."

"Why won't you just tell me already, teme?!" Naruto blurted out exasperatedly, flapping his arms.

"Why should I?" Sasuke shot back, hiding an amused smile.

"Well, duh! I'm your best friend, for a start. And I asked nicely."

"I'd rather call that an interrogation."

"Come on, Sasuke…!"

"Don't push me."

Naruto pouted shortly before he broke the silence yet again: "Have you asked her out before?"

"Hn."

"Afraid of getting rejected?"

"There you go again."

"Hey, it's just a question."

"…Maybe I am."

"Darn cryptic teme… doesn't know how lucky he is…" Naruto grumbled.

Sasuke smirked and playfully cuffed his shoulder. "Cheer up, dobe. Someday, you'll get lucky. Maybe you shouldn't look so far."

"Huh? What d'you mean?" When he got no response, he continued: "I mean, I've only asked Sakura so far… you mean I'm already looking too far by turning to her?"

"It's just an idea," the raven replied.

Naruto took a deep breath, then his usual smile returned. "Thanks, Sasuke. I feel better now."

"That's good. So, how about some training tomorrow?"

"Are you asking me out?"

"It's just a training session, usuratonkachi."

"I knew that."

"**Sure** you did."

"Watch it, teme, or I'll shoot you straight to the moon!"

"I'd like to see you try," Sasuke teased.

"Oh yeah?!" Naruto retorted and lunged at him. But he was laughing, enjoying this playful brawl – like he always did with Sasuke. The Uchiha returned the fire, and amidst their laughter, all the negativity that came from rejection was forgotten. And Sasuke decided to reveal some other time that he had a thing for blonds with blue eyes…

And the moon? Well, it would have to wait a **long** time before it would get graced with Sasuke's presence.

**(word count: 1,100)**

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I'd be glad to hear what you thought about it. And now I gotta go to bed before I fall asleep on the spot XD Man, I sure don't like working late... :p

(P.S: I think I'm gonna add another chapter to my ItaSasu oneshot, which will thus make it a multi-chapter fic - I'll see if I can live up to the expectations. For those of you who are interested... check it out.)


	41. Prompt 59: Mad

It seems like it has been a while... apologies, but I've been rather busy with the other story ;)

So now it's November... yay, that means Christmas isn't too far away anymore! Oh, goodie goodie, I can barely wait anymore! :D And we've also elected a new president... I know politics can be a rather touchy subject, but I can't resist saying that I'm rather happy that Obama won! Just my opinion, folks... I don't wanna get into a dispute with anyone...

There isn't too much that I can say about this chapter except that it's **AU**, and that the interaction between Mikoto and Fugaku is like when we're in my Dad's car: he loves country music and plays it all the time (especially "The Perfect Country and Western Song"), and Mom and I are suffering XD Just to let you guys know where I got the idea from...

And now enjoy, I hope!

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**Prompt #59: Mad**

"Damn the bastard who is causing this bloody holdup!"

"Dear! Not in front of the kids!"

"Hey, we've been waiting here for God-knows-how-long, and I've just about had it!" Fugaku sighed grumpily as he drummed his fingers on the steering wheel.

"I'm not exactly thrilled either, but do try to watch your tongue!" Mikoto retorted.

Her husband just grumbled, uttering more nasty curses under his breath. When impatient, he could have a filthy mouth indeed. Shaking her head, Mikoto looked in the review mirror, where she saw her older son Itachi. He was sitting there with his eyes closed and bobbing his head in time with the rhythm of the music he was listening to.

Reaching around her seat, Mikoto's fingers soon found the hand of her other son. Sasuke grabbed his mother's hand and gave it an acknowledging squeeze. She always did this at least once during longer car drives, as if to make sure that her children were still there. It was a form of interaction that didn't require words. Itachi, who would soon turn twelve, didn't put up with it as willingly as he had done earlier, but Sasuke still didn't mind.

Currently, he was very bored, to put it bluntly; there wasn't all that much one could do when being stuck in a traffic jam anyhow. When the car was driving, at least, Sasuke could look at the trees and other cars they passed, but now he just kept seeing the same things when he looked out the window.

"Maybe some music will distract me…" Fugaku said as he reached out for the CD player system.

"Oh no, I'm enjoying the silence very much! Let's not disrupt it!" Mikoto interrupted hurriedly.

"Why? I even made a new CD, just in case."

"That's what I'm afraid of," she muttered, cringing. When it came to music, they could hardly ever agree what to listen to: upbeat, lively tunes versus classical music (the main instrument being the violin). Three guesses who preferred what.

The lane to their right moved a bit again, and a different car pulled up beside them. Glad for that change, Sasuke looked out the window; and to his delight, there was another kid in the car, probably older than him and slightly younger than Itachi. It was a boy, and he was scowling.

Guessing that he was in a bad mood and hoping to cheer him up, Sasuke gave him his best smile and waved. The other boy noticed and responded by flipping Sasuke off. The youngest Uchiha knitted his brows, for he didn't know that gesture yet (mainly courtesy of his parents). He blinked in confusion and tilted his head in silent questioning, but the other just made a face and looked away.

It was time to get an answer.

"Nii-san?" Sasuke asked, tugging at Itachi's sleeve.

"What, otouto?" Itachi asked, sounding vaguely annoyed as he took off his headphones.

"What does this mean?" And with that innocent question, Sasuke copied the other boy and gave his brother the finger.

Itachi's eyes got as big as dinner plates for a second while he was in shock, then he quickly covered the youngster's hand before their parents would see it – knowing them, they would throw a major fit.

"Where did you learn **that** from?!" he hissed.

"He showed me…" Sasuke began, pointing out the window. Just then, their own car started to move, and the other car was left behind by the time the brothers looked out the window. Itachi leaned back and gave his sibling a scrutinizing look.

"Really!" the little one insisted, calling on his trusted puppy-eyes.

"Just don't ever do that again in **their** presence," Itachi advised him, nodding his head towards the front seats.

"Oh. Okay, nii-san; if you say so," Sasuke smiled, fully trusting his older brother.

"And next time someone does that to you, you should put them in their place. Or better yet, **I'll** do that," Itachi added as an afterthought, scowling as he imagined someone giving Sasuke the finger…

As the car finally began to move again for good (much to everyone's relief), Sasuke hugged Itachi's arm while the older Uchiha tousled his hair.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

Not much later, they stopped at a highway rest area to get more gasoline and go to the bathroom if necessary. After that, Mikoto took the boys to the store to buy a few snacks while Fugaku waited at the car.

Itachi was looking through the magazines, waiting for Sasuke to pick out a few sweets or chips. He had just picked out a magazine that had a special focus on the music he liked when someone said:

"Hi there, cutie."

Itachi froze and looked first to his left, then to his right. There was no one else around. And the speaker was a guy. That could only mean one thing…

"What?!" he asked, merely turning his head.

"Ooh, you've got a deep voice. But you're still…" He paused, looking Itachi over. The Uchiha balled his fists. "…Hot," he finished.

Now Itachi turned around to come face-to-face with the other, an enraged and crazed smile playing on his lips. He looked scary enough to make a little kid cry.

"Am I really what you think I am?" he asked menacingly.

"Well, duh…"

"Nii-san, I'm done! We– Oh, it's you!" Sasuke exclaimed when he joined them and recognized the other boy.

"Nii-san?!"

"You know him, otouto?" Itachi asked.

"Yeah! He's the guy who taught me this!" Sasuke answered, once more giving them the one-finger salute.

"So, you're a **boy**…" the one in question muttered, being briefly ignored by both brothers as he looked Itachi over again and realized his error.

"Sasuke!" Itachi scolded.

"Oops. Sorry, I forgot," the youngster apologized, hiding his hand behind his back.

"So it was **you** who flipped my brother off. You're in deep shit now, buster," Itachi growled, cracking his knuckles and balling his hands to fists.

"What, because I gave the little sucker the finger? Please. You don't scare me, girly-boy. Talk about a dude who looks like a lady…"

Itachi usually was calm, and Sasuke hadn't often seen him lose his cool before, but now that happened in the greatest tantrum he had ever witnessed. There were two things in the world that made Itachi Uchiha go stark raving mad, and those were a) mistaking him for a girl and b) harming Sasuke or speaking ill of him. Sadly, Mikoto refused to listen to this reasoning of her elder son when she dragged him out of the store by the ear, leaving a bloody pulp behind them.

**(word count: 1,100) **

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I've only written one other "longer" chapter so far... and since I'm not sure if I want to put you guys through the short stuff, it might be a while before I update again, depending on the progress I make on my other story. I'll just see how it goes. Unless you'd already be ready for a Christmas prompt... :p

Please review! And I'll seize the opportunity once more to thank everyone for their support! I can't find the proper words to say how much I appreciate it! :)


	42. Prompt 9: Cut

Gah, it has been almost a month since I last updated this! Gomen nasai! _(bows repeatedly)_ I'm very sorry, but I was just so engrossed with my other story, MTCLF, that I've kinda gotten used to writing "longer" things again. Hmm... I've still got a Christmas prompt in store for this collection (the final part of the so-called "winter mini-trilogy"), but I'll wait with that until December, meanwhile hoping to get a good idea for another prompt. And I know this is just very short, but I don't want you to get the impression that this project has been totally put on hold. It will just take a bit more time. I'm definitely not giving up.

So here's a short scene with the Uchiha bros. for you all!

* * *

**Prompt #9: Cut**

"Boys! Dinnertime!"

Upstairs, Itachi and Sasuke stepped out into the corridor. The smaller one attempted to sneak past the elder, but Itachi blocked his way with a stern look.

"Didn't you hear haha? We'll be late for dinner, and then –" Sasuke began hurriedly.

"Dinner can wait. Sasuke, why are you hiding your hand behind your back?" Itachi interrupted.

"Ano… no particular reason," came the hesitant reply.

"Really? Then you surely won't mind showing it to me."

"No."

"Sasuke, show me that hand."

"No!" the boy shouted.

In a fluid movement, Itachi darted around him and grasped the wrist of the hidden hand. Ignoring Sasuke's protesting squeal, he examined it – and found a thin, long cut on the hand's palm.

"Otouto, why didn't you say something?"

"You… you said you'd be busy, and haha was making dinner…"

Itachi sighed and rose again. "One minute, okasan!" he called before dragging Sasuke to his bedroom, where he bandaged the wound.

"Foolish little brother… I told you not to play with the kunai!"

"I'm sorry, aniki."

"Perhaps you'll listen to me next time." A timid nod. "Good. Let's get going." He took Sasuke's good hand in his own, and together, they marched downstairs.

**(word count: 200)**

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I dunno... when I wrote it (which was quite a while ago), I thought it was a bit fluffy, but now I'm not so sure anymore. Oh well. At least it's a sign of life.

Hope you all are doing fine and are ready for December! Tomorrow in a month it'll be Christmas! Yayz! _(bursts into song)_


	43. Prompt 62: Magic

I think now it can be considered an appropriate time to post the last part of my little "winter trilogy". It's a Winter Wonderland outside... it really gets my hopes up that this year, we will have a White Christmas. God knows it's high time for that.

I hope you won't consider me too selfish, but I really need to hear something positive now... you see, my Mom ran a cat over when we came back from Christmas decoration shopping. I'm so sad right now... it's really hard not to cry while I'm writing this. So again, please don't consider me too selfish. But there was no way we could have avoided that tragedy - it happened within a second... _(sob)_

**Note: AU** (non-massacre).  
**Warning:** very cheesy!  
**Pairings:** NaruSasu and perhaps KakaIru, if you want to regard it as such.

* * *

**Prompt #62: Magic**

As Sasuke walked along the snowy streets of Konoha, he tried to gather his thoughts and picture what he would do once he would be facing Naruto. He considered himself rather lucky to be in this situation in the first place; his hopes hadn't been all that high when he had asked Fugaku if the man would excuse him from the usual family activities of the evening: singing, playing games… just family activities. Never mind that playing cards with Fugaku in particular was rather unnerving, for the head of the family tended to spend lots of time recalling which cards were played as well as preconceiving what could happen in the next round. Worse yet, Itachi seemed to be acquiring exactly that habit…

As he thought of his brother, Sasuke silently gave thanks once again for his support.

"_You should leave quickly, before he'll ask questions – I can tell he's thinking some up. Go ahead and take your time; I'll think up a good excuse. If you want, I could try giving him some __**very**__ subtle hints about your special love interest. Just leave it all to me."_

Of course, Sasuke had accepted the offer in the hopes that it would make his coming-out a bit easier. Following Itachi's advice, he would wait with that until Christmas was over. But who said that just because he wasn't telling Fugaku yet, he couldn't tell Naruto?

"_Just don't rush in, otouto. I daresay you don't want to… startle him, so to speak."_

It was snowing outside, just like it should on a perfect Christmas Eve. The falling snowflakes and the snow on the ground were partially illuminated by the light that shone out of the windows all around. Here and there, tinges of green, blue and red were mixed with the light's usual whitish-yellow color. The nightly air may have been crisp, but Sasuke felt his cheeks get hot when Iruka's house, Naruto's (and Kakashi's) holiday stay, came into view.

'_Calm down, Sasuke! You can do this… just try to be yourself!'_ he tried to tell himself. Still; he had the impression that he might as well hold up a neon sign that gave his secret away in a heartbeat. Hoping beyond hope that that **was** merely an impression, he knocked on the Chuunin's door after hiding his actual present for now.

"Ah, Sasuke-kun! What a pleasant surprise! Merry Christmas!" Iruka greeted him cheerfully.

"Merry Christmas, Iruka-sensei," Sasuke replied with a short bow. "May I quickly see… I mean, **talk to** Naruto?"

"Of course. Wait a moment. Naruto!" Iruka called.

"Yeah?"

"Someone's here to see you!"

"Coming!"

Sasuke wondered if Iruka had deliberately not said who the visitor was. But he had barely even come up with that thought when Naruto came bounding into view.

"Oh! Hi Sasuke! Merry Christmas!" the blond exclaimed with a toothy grin. A Santa hat was perched on his head. Even that sight alone would have been enough to make Sasuke smile.

"Merry Christmas, Naruto. By the way, these are for you…" he said, offering them the other object he had been carrying: a china plate loaded with Christmas cookies, neatly wrapped in an iridescent cellophane sheet and complete with a fancy ribbon.

"No way! Are they home-made?" Naruto asked eagerly.

Sasuke nodded. His mother had given him these on purpose, after all.

"Hooray!" Naruto cheered and promptly glomped Sasuke, who almost lost his balance. As he fully regained it again, he passed the plate to Iruka, who looked delighted too.

"Thank you very much, Sasuke-kun. Please tell your mother that we appreciate this very much. I do hope your family won't be short on cookies, though…"

"Don't worry, Iruka-sensei… Mother always makes enough cookies for an army," Sasuke answered in a slightly muffled voice (Naruto's shoulder was practically in his mouth).

"If you say so… I'll leave you two alone now." Iruka winked at them before going back into the house with the cookies.

"Gee, Sasuke, thanks a lot! Iruka-sensei's cookies aren't bad, but they can't compare to your mom's!" Naruto grinned as he finally let go of Sasuke (who didn't necessarily jump for joy about that). The grin faded when he saw his dark-haired peer gaze at him with a rather forlorn expression. "Hey, is everything okay?" he asked worriedly.

"Um… sure… it's just…" Sasuke began, but was clearly struggling with himself. If only he could rush in and just get the confession over with… but what if Naruto would reject him on the spot? The mere consideration of that option made Sasuke feel sick.

Naruto raised an eyebrow, puzzled about his friend's behavior. "Listen… if you can't tell me, can you show me?" he offered, hoping that that would help Sasuke (even though he thought he sounded completely lame).

As Sasuke began to wonder if he could consider that an invitation, the boys heard a soft jingle that sounded rather familiar. It seemed to be coming from above, and they looked up to see a twig of mistletoe that appeared to be hanging just outside Naruto's bedroom window (which happened to be above the door).

"Huh? I can't remember hanging up some mistletoe there…" Naruto remarked, scratching his head in confusion. All too soon, he gave up on those thoughts and looked at Sasuke, who seemed to be blushing. When he realized why, he was fairly sure that he had turned slightly pink as well. "Look, Sasuke… if you don't want to… you know… we could just forget tradition…" he said slowly.

Silently, Sasuke briefly averted his gaze before shaking his head and looking up again. "No," he replied quietly. "It's tradition. And besides… I do want to… you know…" he added, mimicking Naruto. He watched those blue eyes widen before he closed his own and kissed Naruto on the lips – carefully, almost shyly… Even during the kiss, a smile lighted up his face when he felt how Naruto responded, albeit hesitantly. But Sasuke didn't mind; the fact that his friend was responding at all was a reward in itself for him. And so it was with little to no fear in his eyes that he looked right at Naruto when the kiss came to an end.

"…Wow…" Naruto sighed, blinking.

"That's what I tried to tell you before," Sasuke admitted.

"Ah…"

"By the way; I've also got a present for you."

The present that had been patiently waiting beside the door was handed to the blond, who in turn almost glomped Sasuke again before deciding to do something better: he kissed him again, but this time longer and with less hesitance. On the inside, Sasuke was cheering like a madman…

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

"Kakashi, what are you up to?" Iruka asked in a playfully scornful voice when he found the Copy Ninja crouched beneath the window of Naruto's room, a silver bell in one hand.

"I reckoned that this evening was missing some magic, so I decided to help it along," Kakashi answered with a sly smile.

Raising an eyebrow, Iruka crossed the room and peered out of the window too to see Naruto and Sasuke kissing on the doorstep beneath the mistletoe. Both older ninjas couldn't resist smiling at the scene. It was simply perfect.

**(word count: 1,200)**

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Please review, my friends. I hope you all are doing well, and I sincerely apologize for the delay in updating. But it won't get better all too soon, so be warned.

_devotedtodreams_


	44. Prompt 100: Heart

Oh Lord... it has been over two months now since I last updated this. Gee, guys, I'm really sorry for that, but the muse for MTCLF has completely taken over my mind, at least until I have finished that story (yes, I do believe that those two stories have their individual muses)...

So I've finally decided to post the 100th prompt, even though it is "only" the 44th chapter of this collection. I promise to add more once I'm inspired again. Until then, I hope that this will be somewhat satisfying.

(About the title... don't ask. I guess it only makes sense at the very end... _-shrug-_)

**Note: AU** (non-massacre)  
**Pairings:** NaruSasu; ItaSasu brotherly love

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**Prompt #100: Heart**

Sasuke was just about ready for his date with Naruto. He felt weird when even thinking about it as that. Damn, the butterflies in his stomach were tickling him…

"Sasuke, there's barely enough leftovers from yesterday. If you want, I could make you something else," Itachi said when his brother entered the kitchen.

"It's okay; I-I won't be around for dinner," Sasuke told him.

"Really? You going somewhere?" It was all Itachi could do to keep a straight face as he sensed the younger one's nervousness.

"Yeah… I'm gonna meet Naruto soon. Knowing him, we'll be having ramen –"

"Ah, is that what you talked about with him yesterday?"

"Y-Yeah…"

"You're so nervous, Sasuke…" Itachi raised an elegant eyebrow and grinned a bit. "Is my little brother going on a **date**, by any chance?"

"Well… kinda… maybe… dunno if you could call it that…" Sasuke silenced when he quickly decided that he was sounding like a complete fool. He barely heard how quiet steps made the floorboards creak a bit, but he did notice the hand that was put on his shoulder. He looked up to see Itachi smiling genuinely at him.

"You really have feelings for that kid, don't you?"

Without being able to do anything against it, Sasuke blushed. "…Yeah…"

"I'm not that surprised."

"You aren't?"

"No. Maybe you didn't notice how often you talked about him, including occasional rants, but I did. And now you're even blushing. If I wouldn't know any better, I'd say you're attracted to him."

"But you **do** know better, I presume?" Sasuke asked, biting back a sigh.

"I think I do. I think you love him," Itachi said, sounding as if he were stating a random dry fact.

Sasuke gaped at him, but his blush darkened and was all the answer that was needed.

Itachi's smile broadened even more, and he stroked a stray bang out of Sasuke's face in a quite tender fashion. "My otouto… you're in love!" When he felt how the youngster flinched a bit, he caressed the bang he had just moved. "Sasuke, all is good. You don't have to worry about the fact that you're attracted to a boy; as long as it makes you happy, I'm alright with it."

Whenever he was addressed like that, Sasuke always returned that verbal gesture: "Thank you very much, aniki. I… was wondering how you'd take it."

"Perfectly well, as you can see." As the sky began to turn orange with the beginning of sundown, Itachi underlined his statement one last time by softly and shortly kissing Sasuke on the lips. Some might have misinterpreted that, but it was just a token of brotherly love. Having gotten that over with, Itachi grasped Sasuke by the shoulders and turned him around. "Now go on before you'll be late. And no obligatory bedtime, got it?"

Sasuke grinned. "As you say. See you."

"Have fun."

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

Sasuke thought that the butterflies were going to kill him from inside when he approached the ramen stand and saw Naruto standing there, waiting for him, bathed in the evening's last sunlight. Just then, he felt as if the butterflies were strategically ramming his stomach, trying to burst out and openly show Naruto how nervous and excited he was.

'_Must stay calm, must stay calm…'_ he told himself.

"Hi Sasuke!" Naruto greeted him, appearing to be quite his usual loud, outgoing self.

'_How does he do that?!'_ "Hey there, Naruto. How are you?"

"Hungry! C'mon, let's get something to eat!" the blond answered, grabbing Sasuke by the arm and dragging him inside the ramen stand. The dark-haired boy gazed skywards and sighed; well, at least **one** of them still behaved like they usually did.

Things were rather quiet as they ate their food. This normality helped Sasuke lose some of his nervousness, but when they were almost done and a conversation was initiated, it returned tenfold.

"Um… Sasuke?"

"What?"

"Are you gonna eat that?" Naruto pointed at the temporarily abandoned noodles.

As a smile flashed over his face, Sasuke pushed the bowl towards him. "No, go ahead."

Grinning, Naruto attacked the precious noodles with his chopsticks, eating them in his eager, at times sloppy fashion. Sasuke contented himself with simply watching that happen, almost propping up his chin on one of his hands. He couldn't even remember the last time he had spent such quality time with Naruto – and hopefully the amount of quality would increase soon. And that it did.

"Mmh; there's nothing like a good ramen at the end of the day, right?" Naruto asked brightly, licking his lips. The stains from the sauce on his cheeks remained, however.

"Quite."

"Are you alright? You look kinda… flustered," Naruto remarked, cocking his head as he looked closely at Sasuke's face.

"Really? Well, you look… saucy."

"What? What's that supposed to mean?"

"You've got sauce on your face."

"Ah. Clean it away?" Naruto asked.

"If you want me to," Sasuke replied.

Naruto nodded and mentally kept his fingers crossed. Sasuke took a deep breath, then licked his finger and slowly extended a hand until he touched Naruto's cheek. The blue eyes widened a bit, and Sasuke watched how the other's cheeks turned slightly pink. Carefully, he moved his finger, rubbing the stains until they came off. Most of them did, but two or three didn't quite vanish.

"Naruto… I hope you won't think ill of me," he said softly.

"Why would I?" Naruto asked back.

Instead of a verbal answer, Sasuke leaned over and began to lick those stubborn stains. The blond ninja hadn't quite expected a move like this from his friend, but he enjoyed it all the way. In fact, he found the touch very electrifying.

"Sasuke…" he muttered.

"I-I'm already done, Naruto," the younger Uchiha replied in an apologetic manner before drawing back. To his relief, his tongue had done the trick, and Naruto's face was clean again.

"Too bad; I liked it."

"…Oh?"

"Sasuke, I know we've been at each other's throats quite often before and that I called you a bastard plenty of times, but… still, you're my friend. But I've been thinking, and I'm not sure what **your** opinion is, but I think you're… more than just a friend. Ever since we kissed…"

"I thought about that often. I tried to engrave that feeling in my memory, but since that happened quite a while ago, it has faded. I would be lying if I would claim that I wouldn't want to experience it again, but this time with a different approach."

"**You** want to kiss me again? You, the big, bad Sasuke?" Naruto grinned.

Sasuke shook his head. "Don't, Naruto. I'm really serious. I'm serious when I say that yes, I do want to kiss you."

"You should know me; I was only kidding," Naruto told him with a laugh, and then, without warning, he closed the distance between them as their lips met. He followed right away as Sasuke flinched a bit with sheer surprise. Then, finally, the dark-haired teen seemed to fully comprehend that his desired situation had come to be, and he wrapped his arms around Naruto's neck. As they got even closer together, the kiss deepened, and a jolt of excitement rushed through Sasuke's veins when he felt the tip of Naruto's tongue poke his lips, hinting the next stage. When the younger Uchiha gasped in anticipation, Naruto ended the touch and retreated with a smile on his face.

"Naruto, I… I… I…" Sasuke faltered. After all he had told his peer before, he found himself close to unable to speak three simple words.

The ambitious boy with the dream of becoming the Hokage someday put a hand on his friend's shoulder. He had an expression on his face that was more genuine, sincerer and more moving than any one Sasuke had ever seen before.

"I know; I love you too, Sasuke."

He found it highly amusing to watch the other's mouth open and close a few times, like a fish, before an almost stunned response was given:

"Really? You… love me?"

"Is it my dream to become the Hokage?" Naruto retorted slyly.

There was only one answer to that question: yes. And yet Sasuke looked as if he couldn't quite believe it. He wondered if someone had been able to guess Naruto's love interest like Itachi had been able to do with him.

"Sasuke, what's up? You're looking right through me," Naruto remarked, waving a hand in front of his face.

"Hmm? Oh, nothing… I was just wondering if anyone knows that you're… interested in me instead of girls."

"Oh, you mean because I was seemingly always after Sakura? She's just cute, but that doesn't compare to you. I don't mind what people think of my preferences; I just never considered it necessary to yell it out for everyone to hear. But now that you asked: what about you?"

"Itachi found it out even though I never said anything."

"How did he do that?"

Sasuke grinned a bit. "He's my brother, after all. And apparently I did talk a lot about you."

"Really? And what did you say?"

"That you're a loser… disillusioned… too ambitious for your own good…"

"Sasuke…!" Naruto growled, but the other boy continued relentlessly:

"…Amazing…"

The blond silenced at that word. Sasuke sighed.

"Naruto, I may say that you're way too ambitious, but I don't mean it in a bad way. It's a good thing to have a goal in life – and with you, it's just part of who you are. I accept that."

"And **you **are **not** ambitious? Come on, who's the one I'm always trying not to be a step behind of? My equal, my benchmark?"

"…I am."

"Exactly. And that's what helps me to try and work even harder. You really are very important to me."

"I second that for you."

Naruto smiled, then leaned over and kissed Sasuke again. This time, the latter didn't flinch at all; on the contrary, he hinted pretty quickly that he wished to deepen the kiss. Naruto made it his task to initiate that next step, and like before, he used his tongue to poke Sasuke's lips. When he felt those lips part in a willing invitation, he granted Sasuke's wish, and the two of them spent the next couple of minutes making out, the passion accelerating more and more as it went on…

Quite a bit later, when it was already deep night over Konohagakure, Sasuke and Naruto walked through the empty streets, hand in hand. Both were equally happy to have learnt that their feelings were mutual, and both were looking forward to spending even more time together. When it was time for their ways to part momentarily, they shared another deep kiss, promising to see each other again tomorrow. Sasuke felt like he was in a dream when he approached his house, and he was almost startled to hear someone call softly when he entered:

"Sasuke?"

The sense for reality kicked back in, and Sasuke went to the living room, where Itachi was reading a thriller. The elder Uchiha looked up expectantly when he sensed a presence approaching.

"There you are, little brother! Well, how was it?" he asked, putting the book aside after neatly folding the page's corner.

"It was very pleasant," Sasuke replied as he sat down.

"Ah. And you're happy, too? As in, he likes you back?" Itachi probed.

Silently, Sasuke nodded. Itachi thought that he didn't really look like someone who had just come back from a date, but then again, he knew that his sibling didn't often show exactly how happy he was from the get-go. It would have been weird to hear him squeal and be all smiles.

"That's great. You go for it," he told the younger one and put an arm around him.

Allowing his contentment to overcome him, Sasuke leaned against him, his heart beating fast with utmost happiness. He was sure that that was its way of singing for newfound joy.

**(word count: 2,000)**

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Reviews make me very happy... but heck, what's new? So, if you can spare the time, please give me some feedback! As for the next chapter of MTCLF... I'm working on it. I don't like what I've done so far, so I think I'll start the next chapter differently than I had planned to. Stay tuned! Hope all is well with everyone, BTW! ^_^

With much love,  
_devotedtodreams_


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